LEAD:
Emergency Management
SUPPORT:
Central Services
Communications Department
Community and Environmental Programs (Public Information)
Employee and Administrative Services (EAS)
GeoData Center
Sheriff's Office
I. INTRODUCTION
A. Purpose
To collect, process, analyze, disseminate and use information about a potential or actual disaster situation.
B. Scope
This ESF applies to the information needs of the Thurston County Emergency Operations Center for assessing a disastrous or potentially disastrous situation and supporting related response and planning efforts. This ESF will be implemented in concert with ESF #2, Communications and Warning, and ESF #23, Damage Assessment.
II. RELATED POLICIES
None specific.
III. PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS
A. To identify urgent response requirements during a disaster, or the threat of one, and to plan for continuing response, recovery and mitigation activities, there will be an immediate and continuing need to collect, process and disseminate situational information.
B. Information will be provided by cognizant field personnel, responders, volunteers, the public, the media, and others.
C. Information, particularly initial information, may be ambiguous, conflict with information from other sources or with previous information from the same source, or be limited in detail.
D. Information collection may be hampered due to many factors including: damage to communication systems; communications system overload; damage to the transportation infrastructure; effects of weather, smoke, and other environmental factors.
IV. CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS
A. Whenever any part of Thurston County is threatened by a hazard that could lead to disaster, or when a disaster situation exists, the EOC will be activated at the appropriate level to assess the situation.
1. The EOC Administration Coordinator will collect, record and disseminate information to the appropriate staff and facilitate the dissemination of information to appropriate field personnel and responders.
2. The EOC Operations Coordinator will display and analyze information for immediate response needs.
3. The EOC Planning Coordinator will display and analyze information for future response and recovery needs.
B. Information analysis will include, as appropriate:
1. Assessment and display of the hazards impact, including the boundaries of the affected area, and the distribution, type and magnitude of damage.
2. Maintaining a current status of emergency response activities, resource needs and requests, and the status of critical facilities.
3. Establishing priorities in the event of a scarcity of resources.
4. Consolidation of information into logs and reports to keep others informed and to document relevant activities.C. Planning will include, as appropriate:
1. Using the analyzed information to identify trends and determine courses-of-action for responding to a hazard or its effects. Planning will focus on response strategies and resource requirements beyond those needed for immediate response, attempting to anticipate future actions and needs. The planning horizon may be the next hour, 24 hours, or week, depending on the scenario and situation.
2. Planning information will be shared with other EOC functional positions and incorporated in appropriate displays.
3. The planning staff will recommend courses-of-action for immediate and future activity, including the need for specific resources identified as part of the planning process.
4. Once a planning cycle has ended, the planning staff will immediately commence planning for the next cycle.
D. Whenever information is lacking, contains insufficient detail, is ambiguous, or is conflicting, recommendations or decisions will be made on the best analysis possible under the circumstances using the combined talents of the staff then assembled.
E. Analysis and planning will continue until the EOC is deactivated. The analysis and planning functions may be transferred to the Disaster Recovery Team following deactivation.
V. RESPONSIBILITIES
A. All County Organizations
1. Provide damage assessment information to the EOC in accordance with ESF-23 - Damage Assessment.
2. Continue to provide disaster related information to the EOC as it becomes known.
3. Provide information and support as appropriate.
B. Central Services
Provide liaison to the EOC to maintain or adjust telephone and computer configurations to support the County's information needs, including Internet access.
C. Communications
1. Develop procedures to keep the EOC informed of relevant disaster information to support the analysis and planning functions.
2. Communicate urgent information to first response agencies as requested by the EOC.
D. Emergency Management
1. Develop EOC procedures for coordinating information management, including flow, recording, dissemination, display, analysis, use and reporting.
2. Develop EOC procedures for planning.
3. Maintain the EOC in a configuration to support the analysis and planning function.
4. Include analysis and planning as part of the county-wide emergency management training program.
E. Employee and Administrative Services
Develop policy and procedures to assist the EOC with obtaining appropriately trained personnel to support the supervisor and coordinator functions.
F. GeoData Center
Support the EOC with information display services and products, as appropriate.
G. Sheriff's OfficeAuthorize the use of Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Services (RACES) and Radio Watch volunteers to be used in the EOC to support the information needs of the analysis and planning functions.
H. Public Information
Coordinate all public information and instructions and media relations as defined in ESF #31 Public Information.
VI. REFERENCES
A. EOC Manual
B. Emergency Operating Centers Handbook, FEMA CPG 1-20
C. Washington State Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan
INFORMATION ANALYSIS AND PLANNING CHECKLIST
Proactive disaster management depends on an accurate assessment of the situation and a prediction of likely outcomes. The Information Analysis and Planning staff is responsible for assisting the EOC Supervisor by assessing the current and projected situation, contingencies (remember Murphy's Law!), and resource requirements.
_____ 1. Collect information regarding the situation, including resource requirements.
_____ 2. Evaluate information received, considering information shortfalls.
_____ 3. Anticipate changing conditions, circumstances, priorities, resource needs, and resource availability.
_____ 4. Share information with the EOC staff.
_____ 5. Prepare and update displays, briefings, and reports as needed.
_____ 6. Develop plans to support continued response or recovery activities.
_____ 7. Recommend courses-of-action to the EOC Supervisor.
Information of common interest and use to the entire EOC staff, and that which
provides the most complete picture of the situation, will be displayed in an appropriate
format.
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF INFORMATION
The Essential Elements of Information which may or may not be immediately or readily available to County staff but are of common need to one or more response activities may include the following.
OVERALL DISASTER INFORMATION
_____ 1. Boundaries of the disaster area
_____ 2. Social/economic/political impacts
_____ 3. Jurisdictional boundaries
_____ 4. Status of transportation systems
_____ 5. Status of communications systems
_____ 6. Access points to the disaster area
_____ 7. Status of utilities
_____ 8. Hazard specific information
_____ 9. Weather data affecting operations
_____10. Seismic or other geophysical information
_____11. Status of critical facilities
_____12. Status of key personnel
_____13. Status of disaster or emergency declaration
_____14. Major issues/activities
_____15. Overall priorities for response
____ 16. Status of upcoming activities
____ 17. Status of community housing and shelter
____ 18. Status of critical public health issues (Water supply, food, sanitation, waste, infection, or hazardous waste)
____ 19. Extent of damage to private property