This IN-PERSON Training Opportunity is IDEAL FOR:

Structural Engineers, Architects and Code Enforcement Officials

Post-Disaster Building Safety Assessment Training | 6.5 PDHs

Hosted by the SEAMASS SEER Committee

(Structural Engineering Emergency Response)

Presented by 3 Industry Experts

Monday, October 16, 2023 | 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. ET

at CityPoint, 500 Totten Pond Road, Waltham MA

First Floor Meeting Rooms C & D

Featured Case Studies :

2011 Hurricane Sandy; 1991 Hurricane Bob;

2019 Puerto Rico Earthquake; 2011 & 2015 Massachusetts Winters

SEAMASS is pleased to present this California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) Safety Assessment Program (SAP) which is based on the Applied Technology Council's well-accepted post-disaster methodologies and documentation guidelines ATC-20 and ATC-45 (for earthquake and wind/flood events, respectively.)  

This SAP training course provides engineers, architects and code-enforcement professionals with the basic skills required to perform safety assessments of structures following disasters. Licensed design professionals and certified building officials will be eligible for SAP Evaluator certification and credentials following completion of this program and submission of required documentation. 

Case studies, including 1991 & 2011 local Hurricanes Bob & Hurricane Sandy, 2019 Puerto Rico Earthquake and Snow Damage from the Massachusetts winters of 2011 & 2015 will be presented and discussed to illustrate examples of possible damage scenarios that a Second Responder could encounter and how to properly assess the damage and record it for later use by emergency management personnel.  

Attendees will be introduced to the FEMA Incident & Command requirements and protocols for responders operating in a post-disaster theater which will prepare them to take the self-study online courses required of Second Responders in most jurisdictions who wish to perform post-disaster assessments. 

Participants will also learn about emergency operations in Massachusetts including Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, the Office of Public Safety and Inspections and FEMA’s Urban Search & Rescue Massachusetts Task Force 1 including its Structural Specialists Team.  

** We anticipate a large audience for this timely topic, so register today **

WHEN: Monday, October 16, 2023 | 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. (ET)

WHERE: CityPoint, 500 Totten Pond Road, Waltham MA | First Floor Rooms C & D

PDHs: 6.5 SEAMASS Certified

INVESTMENT: $175 Includes: ATC-45 Field Manual; Cal OES SAP Student Workbook PDF; Breakfast & Lunch

TRAINING SCHEDULE

(Timing & Topics Subject to Change)

7:30 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:00 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. SAP Introduction, Process and Procedures

10:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. BREAK 

10:30 a.m. - 12:00 a.m. Building Evaluations with Assessment Exercise

12:00 p.m. - 12:45 p.m. Lunch 

12:45 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. Critical Lifeline Systems + Non-Earthquake Hazards

2:15 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. BREAK

2:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m. Field Safety + Conclusion

3:45 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Q & A

4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Head Shots for Cal OES SAP ID Cards

Michael Fillion, PE, SECB

Principal | Fillion Group 

The training will be led by Michael Fillion, PE, Chair of the SEAMASS Structural Engineering Emergency Response Committee (SEER), member of NCSEA’s SEER Committee, Certified Cal OES SAP Evaluator, Coordinator & Trainer and Chair of NCSEA’s Existing Buildings Committee. In the aftermath of Massachusetts's Historic Hurricane Bob, Mr. Fillion provided rapid & detailed assessment reports for structures damaged by the storm. During the winters of 2011 & 2015, he provided snow damage building assessments and is responsible for recent snow damage provisions in the International Existing Building Code. In 2020 Mr. Fillion Trained a group of engineers in Puerto Rico to help with post-earthquake recovery efforts.  

Thomas Gatzunis, PE

Section Manager | CHA Consulting, Inc.

Thomas Gatzunis, PE, a board director of the SEAMASS SEER Committee is the former Commissioner for the Massachusetts Department of Public Safety and serves as a Structural Specialists for FEMA’s Urban Search & Rescues Massachusetts Task Force 1. Mr. Gatzunis has considerable experience responding to disasters including the Western Tornadoes, 2011, Hurricane Sandy, 2012 and Springfield Explosion, 2012. 

David Grandpre, PE

Structural Engineer | CA Pretzer Associates

David Grandpre, PE, SECB, served as a Structural Specialist for the RI Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Team (2005-2016) is the Co-founder, RI Architects and Engineers Emergency Response Task Force 7 (RI AEER TF7), a member of NCSEA’s SEER Committee and is a certified Cal OES SAP evaluator & Trainer. Mr. Grandpre's area of specialty is investigating damaged buildings to determine the scope and cause of damage along with how best to repair the structure.  He has investigated damage to buildings from numerous hurricanes, including Hurricane Sandy and to the U.S. Virgin Islands following Hurricanes Irma and Marie. Mr. Grandpre also traveled to Puerto Rico following the 2019 Earthquake there to perform post-earthquake building assessments.