"Why are they doing this now?"
Maybe they have been reading ETS and listening to us? I mean, we all advocate being prepared at home, at work, and in the car. If the government provides their employees with survival kits, why not conclude they've finally pulled their head out from where the sun don't shine -- at least in this matter?
Actually, the "government" has had its head in the sunshine for some time. Working for the National Park Service in a job that involved regular flights, I got regular training in aircraft crash survival - one involved a helicopter mockup in a swimming pool and some really good information, quite consistent with that presented here on ETS....
Rangers still go missing from time to time.....