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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997-022 EOC Critique - 1997 Flood 1997 NEW YEAR'S FLOOD EOC CRITIQUE February 12, 1997 ORIGINAL A critique of the EOC was held in order to identify ways in which we could improve our emergency response to disasters. Gary Brown, who facilitated the discussion, assured participants that we as a team were very successful in responding to the emergencies which plagued us. The intent again was not to second guess what was done, just be able to improve on delivery of emergency services. OPERATIONS COMMANDER: As a result of the recent "real life" test of the City's emergency plan it is Keith's opinion that it needs a rewrite in certain areas and we may need to review it as often as every 6 months in order to ensure it remains current. There is a need to identify specific people by name at least 3 deep in each EOC position assignment. Ongoing EOC training must be maintained. Operationally, in a disaster such as the flood, the City may need to be split in two geographical areas, perhaps in an EastlWest manner with Mountain Ave being the dividing line and having two Operations Sections Officers over these areas who would then report to the Incident Commander. Another option would be to have the primary Operations Commander be responsible for the downtown area and a second or assistant Operations Commander be in charge of the remainder of the City. The recent exercise proved the hypothesis that you can bring non emergency personnel into the system and they function very well ala the PIO role assumed by Barbara Christensen Linda Hoggatt. It was also identified that the emergency management software (SOFT Risk) would be very beneficial. Keith has spoken with Computer Services about the need to load the software and train personnel on the use of the system. Data needs to be loaded on the hospital, college, school district, staff, heavy equipment and so on. It was recommended that the City load their data on a lap top and pass the computer on to other agencies to load their data. Onqoinq communication with the merchants was adequate but as with anything else this could be enhanced. Community wide disasters will result in a large volume of volunteers and management of this volunteer resources needs to be well structured and finely tuned to be most effective. Security was excellent! No looting incidents have been reported. No loss of life or major injuries were reported! Equipment: more hand held radios were needed by various departments to enhance communications in the field. There is a need for a liaison position for communication with the other EOC's in the valley; this was not manned and coordinated in a consistent manner. The liaison should be someone familiar with the City resources and systems thus enhancing interaction with other EOC's operating in the County. Dept. of Forestry has personnel that can act as liaisons between Cities if needed. Safety: There should be a safety officer for each department and coordinated by one safety manager assigned to the EOC. PLANNING: Previous table top exercises proved essential to success and we need to continue practicing EOC operations. Needs to be a call for other personnel at the activation of EOC as Dick Wanderscheid was available but not initially summoned. The location of the Police Department as an EOC proved valuable. There may need to be more people in "logistics" to handle issues such as water and personnel staffing needs and this typically is not a planning function. The use of the computer system web page served us well in communicating with the public. The EOC meetings did not seem to provide adequate feedback information at times from Public Works. We can plan better if we have clearer information as to the status of all the major operating departments. Briefings need to encompass all areas impacted by the emergency, not limited to the major impact zones. Phones being answered at the police department were handled in an exemplary manner. However, an early realization materialized in the emergency that a more clearly defined telephone tree needs to be developed. Information to the public declined somewhat after the deactivation of the EOC, yet water had not been turned on for the entire community until three more days had elapsed. Training of line personnel in other departments (personnel not normally impacted by a disaster) needs to be done regarding EOC roles and how to deal with "on lookers" at any disaster. Procurement handled by Mike Biondi in Logistics worked well. No problems were recognized in this area. LOGISTICS: RVTD and the school districts are listed as resources for mass evacuation. With regard to shelters, it was strongly recommended that we do not open a shelter unless it is done by the Red Cross for liability reasons. However, the selection of Phoenix High was not viable. Highway 99 was under water at times as well as Interstate 5. Any relocation/evacuation site should remain in the City. McNeill Hall at SOSC was never opened due to the water shortage. The Salvation Army is another resource, especially if there is not much in the way of lead time. Someone from the school district may want to attend the EOC meetings. We were in contact with ASD staff via telephone. PIO: The most significant problem with news media coverage was the lack of control with how the media handled the information provided them. It was suggested designating a specific channel for updates as the current method is to send all info to Jackson County EOC for dissemination. Name tags are essential. A status chart of whose currently involved in the EOe and where they are is beneficial. Chief Brown suggested utilizing a brightly colored vest with sections identified i.e. "PIO" with slots for specific name tags complete with task assignments for the designated role in the pocket. It is necessary to have at least two people assigned to the PIG slot for rest and essential "down time". Press releases were going out to 12 different locations and a basic list of emergency fax numbers needs to be established. There needs to be some consistency with the City phone system. Volunteers should be reporting directly Logistics and not to the EOC. A live broadcast with updates by Rogue Valley Community Cable TV Access would be desirable. PUBLIC WORKS: Limited communication was a problem within this department. Better field information/communication is needed. At one point all departments (water, waste water,sewer) seemed to be without communication. HOSPITAL: EOe activation process needs to be made to all interested parties, i.e. hospital. An issue that arose requires a health official be involved in the EOC. The hospital's largest concern was water and this was handled well by City staff. EOC needs to continue to be staffed for a longer period of time until normal life sets it. Toilet systems need to be identified by neighborhoods. There needs to be a buy-in to improve the current system. SOSC: Since there was no damage to the college, as such the SOSC EOC was not activated. It was felt there could be increased utilization of KSOR to keep the public informed. The JPR station did a great job in covering the flood. The following are one line comments of things that worked well: 1. 12 hour shifts for Police Department personnel worked well, allowing one Sergeant for police functions and one for the plaza area. It was felt that Police/Communications handling of the flood incident went very well. 2. The computer program designed and implemented for volunteers by Phil really worked well. 3. The Mayor's network for canvassing neighborhoods worked extremely well. 4. The warehouse was an excellent supply source on such short notice. 5. Orange vests worked great for identifying emergency personnel as well as for safety. 6. Yellow crime scene tape to cordon off the flooded plaza worked well as a temporary barrier but snow fencing worked much better. 7. Providing 24 hour security for the impacted buildings was a terrific drain on patrol forces but worth the effort to show support for the flood victims and minimize danger to on lookers and prevent looting. 8. No looting or injury occurred! 9. Plaza KIOSK as a field command center for police security worked great. 10. Jeep 4x4's definitely proved their value in the flood. Cars could not have responded to high water locations with rocks and debris on the muddy roads as the Jeeps were able to do. 11. Citizen/business notification before the flood was beneficial in saving inventories and property of those who heeded. 12. The Public Works Director and Assistant City Administrator were new to the city and as such the Police Chief and Fire Chief assumed the key EOC roles and did great jobs. 13. Staff responded and returned when called. This was a concern initially, but proved to be a moot point. People showed up on their own. 14. There was a regularly scheduled Council meeting held 8 days into the disaster and there was not one complaint. This was a testimony to the EOC system and the entire City staff as to how we all responded to a crisis. 15. The location of the Police Department as an EOC proved valuable. The following are one line issues for future consideration (improvement to EOC activations): 1. Needs to be a clear cut initial call for the activation of EOC. 2. Call handling in general for the EOC worked well, but messengers are needed to see that information gets passed to the key EGC personnel (or the dispatchers) in a timely manner without taking call takers away from their phones. 3. There was sometimes confusion as to personnel assignments for the EOC. In addition to the signs on doors there needs to be a posted listing of who is in charge of each function and when they go off duty. 4. There needs to be earlier assignment of City personnel to the EOC and back up positions designated for them. 5. City Police Department lines were ringing busy. There's a need for more lines coming into the EOC. 6. Need for a second computer in the EOC meeting room and an additional phone line. 7. Need sign in and out sheet put into effect immediately to capture personnel data who were involved in the emergency. This would be best located in the Sergeants office. This is for tracking of time for FEMA reporting. 8. Electric display board in front office seems to lighten the longer it stayed up and it blocked the visibility to the front counter area. Possibly a desk needs to be put in front of the screen for public access. 9. EOC needs to immediately staff a person as Volunteer Coordinator to compile a list of those coming/calling in and assigning tasks. 10. Need to load the Soft Risk computer program on all work stations (LAN). 11. Sufficient equipment was not available in advance of incident, i.e. number of boots, rain gear, extra flashlights, flares, snow fencing. Too much of it was requested to be obtained in a short period of time. The City should consider issuing some of these items prior to an incident or have a stock room of the additional needed equipment. 12. The City taking control of endangered property until inspected was appropriate but presented a logistics problem for Police Officers in time, personnel and security. 13. Need assessment teams in outlying areas to better serve the entire city needs. 14. Opening up and shutting down of shelters caused confusion in the media information and to the public. Why should citizens have to go to Phoenix High School for shelter? 15. Volunteers worked hard but were not able to be held accountable, i.e. some went home after only 2 hours if they wished or just wandered off. It was difficult to keep track of them and it would work better if they too checked in and out with the police supervisor at the scene. 16. Portable heaters were needed, but they should be butane and blow heat out or the type that attaches to 5 gal tanks. Construction tents might be a good idea at remote locations or where no building is available to keep people warm. It got down to 10-12 degrees in providing security for the damaged plaza buildings. 17. Need equipment supply of ropes, throw bags, and life vests for possible water rescue situations either at PO or at Fire Department or in patrol vehicles. 18. Need training for all personnel in swift water rescue. 19. Need to stock flares with spikes in them to keep off ground in water situations. 20. Need more street barricades on supply for the city. All departments ran out. T-fence posts would be useful to hold up snow fencing. 21. Better security of all entrances to the park was needed (too many entrances) Parks department was helpful in securing Lithia Park. 22. Evacuation of specific areas needs to be double checked and verified. It appears someone reentered the flood area (apartment over the damaged plaza sites) after having been told to evacuate. 23. Physical searches of buildings/homes needs to be made in evacuation areas if time/personnel and safety allow. 24. Emergency information provided given to the City regarding the Plaza business owners was not kept up to date nor does it, in most cases, provide home phone contact numbers. This is needed in emergencies in conjunction with a sign off sheet for verification and tracking. 25. Information passed from shift to shift should be in written form to verify and provide good documentation after the incident is over. 26. Decision changes regarding providing access to the plaza area by the merchants in question did not get to police officers on scene making security personnel look uninformed and creating confusion. 27. Some confusion began when the EOC terminated and relayed command to the recovery stage. No one was sure who was in charge after it went to the recovery stage. 28. Need administrative assistants or aides assigned to the key EOC people from the beginning. 29. Mayor and City Administrator did not have specific roles within the Incident Command system. This enabled them to fill in where necessary and add expertise/knowledge in supportive roles. strategies. 30. There is a need for cell phones that are portable and smaller in size than ones donated by AT&T. 31. Future considerations should be given to develop a strategic plan within the police department to deal tactically with FLOOD, FIRE, CIVIL UNREST, EVACUATION, EARTHQUAKE and HAZARDOUS MATERIALS. 32. Stress increased with the length/duration of the incident. This needs to be addressed early on in the incident, especially one that may go for some length of time to ensure people get needed rest. 33. Merchants need a pre determined liaison to the EOC and to be integrated into EOC training. Sandra Slattery of the Chamber has volunteered to take this position. 34. Food for emergency workers provided needs to be more sustainable/nutritious. Hot meals were needed for evening/night crews. Food needs to be sent to the EOC for those who cannot leave. 35. There is a need to have direct access via pager or cell phone at all times to the City Administrator. 36. Phone lists (License file) was inadequate and there is a need to have business owners home phone numbers added to list. AlaOll responsible are out of date. 37. Message transmittal foOlls could have been utilized better. 38. Have "assessment teams" from Utility, AFR, and APD go to areas of frequent call to better cover entire city. 39. 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