Missoula County Emergency Operation Plan

“Five years worth of food, water and ammunition in the basement, and what do we get? Subterranean monsters.” --from the movie Tremors.

Political subdivisions in Montana are required by M.C.A. to have an Emergency Operations Plan. A mutual aid agreement of long standing makes our Emergency Operations Plan, known previously as the Disaster Plan, a joint City/County effort.

Disaster Planning Committee  Missoula Police Department  Missoula County Sheriff’s Office  Missoula City Fire Department  Missoula Rural Fire District  Missoula County Public Works  City of Missoula Public Works  City Attorney  County Attorney  Health Department

An Emergency Operations Plan exists in two general parts. 1.The Basic Plan. a.Legal authorities and responsibilities. b.Organizational structure and relationships as they exist: i.among public agencies; ii.between public agencies and private sector organizations pursuant to state or federal statute or regulation, and; iii.potentially by execution of a formal agreement between such agencies, the City of Missoula and Missoula County.

c.National Incident Management System compliance and other state or federal requirements. d.Amendment and review process. e.Establishes annexes to the Basic Plan. i.Subject matter and title of each annex. ii.Organizational responsibility for developing each annex and keeping it current. iii.Review and amendment process.

f.A current hazard and risk assessment for Missoula County. g.Formal adoption and amendment by Missoula County, the City of Missoula, and other agencies to be decided.

2.The Annexes & Appendices. a.Particular response issues in a variety of areas. b.Developed by primary user agency or agencies to a level of detail that meets their needs, but NOT to the level of standard operating procedures or other operational matters that can change very quickly and for unexpected reasons. c.Do not need approval by the governing bodies to amend.

This project is paid for by $41,000 in federal funds administered by the state through the Disaster and Emergency Services Division.

Requirements for Emergency Operations Plan content. 1.The requirements of M.C.A. are minimal. a.the emergency responsibilities of all local agencies, if any, and officials; b.the disaster and emergency chain of command; c.local evacuation authority and responsibility; and d.local authority and responsibility for control of ingress and egress to and from an emergency or disaster area.

2.Some currently existing Annexes are required by other state or federal government authority. a.Hazardous Materials. b.Terrorism. c.Evacuation (known as Population Protection in the current plan). d.Joint Information Center

3.Required by the grant used to fund the project. a.Continuity of Operations and Continuity of Government Annex. b.Mass Fatality and Mass Casualty Annex. (These topics are currently addressed, but not as free-standing Annexes.) c.Special Needs Annex, which “provides guidance for identifying, supporting, and monitoring individuals within a jurisdiction who may need extra assistance because of age, medical or cognitive conditions, financial capability, and/or no visible means of support during times of emergencies and disasters.” Requirements for Emergency Operations Plan content.

d.Functional Annexes. Exact functions are not spelled out, but Damage Assessment and Communications are noted examples. There is also strong local interest in establishing a fully developed health and medical annex. e.Hazard-Specific Appendices. These address specific hazards identified in Missoula County during our planning process. These may be as short or long as required, depending on situation. A Hazard-Specific Appendix should not duplicate a topic already addressed by an Annex.

f.Note that our current Disaster Plan deals with a number of specific topics that ought to be segregated in a functional annex or hazard specific appendix.

4.The Plan must follow one of the formats found in the FEMA Comprehensive Guide CPG-101, online at cpg_101_layout.pdf

The grant requires that all annexes and appendices include input from citizen, volunteer and non-governmental entities. The grant requires that all annexes and appendices include input from citizen, volunteer and non-governmental entities. A website will be dedicated to reviewing documents and soliciting comment. A website will be dedicated to reviewing documents and soliciting comment.

Our funding expires in March, Due to the length of our timeline, our work on the annexes and appendices may not be as extensive as we would like. The things that we MUST accomplish are those which meet the grant requirements and give us the tools to move forward.

All of the elements outlined above for the Basic Plan. All of the elements outlined above for the Basic Plan. A method for agencies to go forward with ongoing Annex and Appendix planning that will meet their needs now and in the future. A method for agencies to go forward with ongoing Annex and Appendix planning that will meet their needs now and in the future. Missoula County’s Emergency Operations Plan needs to exist in an electronic version that can be effectively used and amended. Missoula County’s Emergency Operations Plan needs to exist in an electronic version that can be effectively used and amended.

We’ve hired MTG Management Consultants of Seattle to manage our planning process. But it’s up to us to give them the guidance and participation they need to do that work. The County’s current Disaster Plan can be found online at sasterPlan/PDF/Co%20DisPlan_CONTENTS% 20List.pdf

Initial Role of the Disaster Planning Committee Establish Planning Calendar Establish Planning Calendar Set long range scope of EOP and planning priorities Set long range scope of EOP and planning priorities Select EOP format from FEMA approved alternatives Select EOP format from FEMA approved alternatives Make provisions to include other organizations in the planning process. Make provisions to include other organizations in the planning process. Serves as long term core planning group. Serves as long term core planning group.

The official kickoff for this project will be at the next regularly scheduled LEPC/DPC meeting, which is Tuesday, January 12, 2010, at 1:30 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn.