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Community Capability:

Building for Post 9/11 Terrorism Preparedness

Presented to the 5th Annual Emergency Management Higher Education Conference

May 31, 2002

Steven Charvat, CEMDirector of Training, Exercises, Mitigation & Planning

DC Emergency Management Agency

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Overview of Presentation

DC Response District Response PlanMayor’s Task Force and Emergency Preparedness CouncilEmergency Planning and PartnershipsContinuing IssuesNext steps

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The Unique Challenges of District Government

We function as a city, County and State with

daily interactions with our federal partners,

neighboring states and regional entities

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September 11, 2001

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Anthrax Response (October 2001 - Present)

First RespondersHart Building ResponseBrentwood Postal FacilityWorking with CongressFederal Components EPA & US Postal Service USPHS Attending Physicians Capitol Police

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District Response PlanCreation of the (new) District Response Plan Based on Incident Command System (ICS) Interoperability with Federal Response Plan

(FRP) Coordinated delivery of assistance and resources Collaborated on by support and lead

agencies and private industry Can be found online @ http://dcema.dc.gov

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District Response Plan:The 15 ESFs

8 Health and Medical ServicesDepartment of Health

7 Resource SupportOffice of Contracting and Procurement

Mass CareDepartment of Human Services6

Information and PlanningEmergency Management Agency5

Fire FightingDC Fire and EMS Department4

Public Works and EngineeringDepartment of Public Works3

CommunicationsOffice of the Chief Technology Officer2

TransportationDepartment of Transportation1

15 Donations and Volunteer ManagementEmergency Management Agency

Community & Media RelationsOffice of Communications14

Law EnforcementMetropolitan Police Department13

EnergyDC Energy Office12

FoodDepartment of Human Services11

Hazardous MaterialsDC Fire and EMS Department10

Urban Search and RescueDC Fire and EMS Department9

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DRP Concept of Operations

District has four operational levels Normal OperationsNormal Operations Operational Level 1Operational Level 1 – Monitoring Phase /increased

potential Operational Level 2Operational Level 2 – Partial Activation of CMT. Operational Level 3Operational Level 3 – Full CMT Activation.

National Capital Region Plan DCO coordinates with FEMA HQ during terrorist event.

Mayor, supported by CMT Director, leads and manages agencies engaged under the DRP.

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Implementation of New National Threat System

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Task Force to Emergency Preparedness Council (EPC)

Maintains, exercises and revises DRP.Emphasis on building relationships and sharing operational and planning informationQuasi-public and private sector partnerships DC Hospital Association Consortium of colleges and universities Council of Governments (COG) Working with PEPCO, Washington Gas, WASA, and others

Organizes stakeholders into four functional subcommittees

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Planning and Training

Planning Support The College and University Hazard

Identification Workbook The Family Preparedness Guide ESF Pocket Guides

Training Support Coordination of Training for Emergency

Preparedness personnel Monthly newsletter identifying courses Development of tailored courses based

on District’s specific needs

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Planning and Training

Planning, Training, and Exercise workgroup establishedDeveloping expanded exercise program to include executive tabletops, functional exercises, and federal-District exercises

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GIS Capabilities

The DC EMA GIS staff is developing applications to: Display Live weather data over detailed area maps Forecast the spread of airborne pathogens and

epidemiological trends Determine best evacuation routes based on real

time traffic conditions Organize the efforts of multiple District Agencies

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Communication & Notification

Emergency Alert System (EAS) provides information to the publicNotification Matrix/Pocket GuidesTechnology GETS system/satellite phones Telephone Switching Priority (TSP) New phone and paging systems

(REACT/ROAMail) 16 alternate methods of communication

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The District of Columbia The District of Columbia continues to be the #1 continues to be the #1

target of Terrorists in the target of Terrorists in the U.S.U.S.

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Fall 2001 CNN 30-city Rankings Study

1. New York2. San Antonio3. Charlotte4. Atlanta5. Phoenix6. Miami7. Washington DC8. Austin9. San Diego10. Columbus, OH

Best Prepared

Well Prepared

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Next Steps in Building Community Capabilities

Participate in TOPOFF II national terrorism exercise (Spring 2003)Conduct full-scale terrorism field exercise for NCRDevelop the District Emergency Management Program to meet or exceed NFPA 1600Seek accreditation under the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP)

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Next Steps in Building Community Capabilities

Strengthen relationships with regional partners and stakeholders.Continue to develop community based emergency plans throughout the DistrictImplement Freedom Corps programIntegrate planning efforts with regional partnersContinue to educate and train emergency response personnel

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Questions ?

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For More Information – please contact:

The District of ColumbiaEmergency Management Agency

Steven Charvat, CEM2000 14th Street, NW

Suite 800Washington, DC 20009 USA

Phone: (202) 673-2101 x 1188FAX: (202) 673-7054

Email: steven.charvat@dc.govwww: http://dcema.dc.gov