ESF #4 FIREFIGHTING



<ENTER JURISDICTION NAME> EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLANANNEX D — THE FIRE AND EMS FUNCTION IntroductionFirefighting and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) functions at the county, state and federal level are addressed in Emergency Support Function (ESF) #4 – Firefighting. The Fire and EMS function at the local level addresses multiple areas of concern during emergencies and this Annex will describe many of them but not all based on the ever expanding capabilities of firefighting and EMS resources in the area. Fire is one of the hazards facing <NAME OF JURISDICTION >. It has the possibility of generating the secondary hazards of hazardous materials incidents and utility outages. Fire may also be the secondary hazard of a larger incident, but will still need to be addressed quickly. The risks associated with a fire emergency are mainly to lives, property, utilities, and municipal infrastructure. Fire, always a danger, could become more lethal during a natural or man-made disaster that impacts the county. Fire, flood, aircraft crashes, train accidents, hazardous materials incidents and numerous other causes occasionally create situations which require dispersal of firefighting/EMS equipment beyond that which is normal. This Function manages and coordinates firefighting activities by mobilizing resources of multiple firefighting agencies. This Function will also likely be a direct link from the emergency operations center to the incident command post. Organizational StructureThe Fire and EMS Function Representative may be at either the local Emergency Operations Center (EOC) or the Incident Command Post (ICP) based on the incident. SituationAll of <NAME OF JURISDICTION > is provided with fire and emergency medical service protection through the following agencies or departments:<NAME OF JURISDICTION > Fire Department<NAME OF JURISDICTION > Emergency Medical Service<NAME OF JURISDICTION > is serviced by fire hydrants. In the event of a long-term power outage a water contingency plan will have to be identified. Although these first responders receive extensive training prior to joining a department, and then often attend weekly training to maintain their certifications, these men and women still face numerous severe hazards on a daily basis. Some of those hazards are: <EXAMPLES: densely populated urban settings, ever increasing high-rise structures, limited equipment and personnel in rural settings, limited access to utilities or natural resources to suppress wild land and/or forest fires, water rescue, rope rescue, terrorism attacks, hazardous materials incidents, and radiological emergencies.>If necessary, specialized teams or response organizations may be brought in to assist on scene in the suppression of the fire or containment of the emergency. Examples of these teams are Urban Search and Rescue, Fast Water Rescue, and Rope Rescue Teams (more information on these is located in the Search and Rescue Function) and Hazardous Materials teams for WMD or Radiological Emergencies (more information on these is located in the Hazmat Function).The Emergency Medical Services are capable of providing:First responder emergency medical servicesMedical transportMass Casualty services to include; Triage, Treatment, and TransportManage the forward movement of patients – moving patients from one region to another to reduce the burden on the local medical system.All Fire Departments and Emergency Medical Services in Hamilton County are part of a Mutual Aid Plan that is designed to dispatch fire and medical units to an incident from multiple jurisdictions based on different factors. Large scale incidents that max out an individual fire department will receive additional responses from neighboring departments to handle the size of the incident rather it be fire or medical. Hamilton County is located in the Southwestern Ohio, Southeastern Indiana, Northern Kentucky (SOSINK) region and has established mutual aid agreements with members in this twelve-county tristate region. Resources will be utilized from existing mutual aid agreements prior to activating other resources. The Ohio Fire Chiefs’ Association’s Ohio Fire Service Emergency Response System (ERS) provides local fire chiefs with easy access to large quantities of fire service resources (hazmat, water rescue, fire response resources, emergency medical services, incident management assistance, etc.) that may be needed to respond to a major fire or natural or man-made disaster. The ERS provides for rapid activation and response of fire service resources in quantities beyond the means of a single fire department and local mutual aid. The ERS is activated by local Incident Commander(s) through a central dispatch point. ERS response will be coordinated by one-or-more of eight Regional System Coordinators who will interact and coordinate with County System Coordinators in their region. County and regional coordinators will gather and analyze information on available resources, type resources in accordance with NIMS resource typing guidelines, and input the data into a central database. Regional and county coordinators will also train personnel regarding the use of and participation in the ERS.The Ohio Fire Chief’s Emergency Response Plan (OFCA/ERP) was developed to aid local fire departments in mobilizing large quantities of personnel and equipment.AssumptionsPlanning for every firefighting or EMS contingency is beyond the scope of this Function but it will outline broad objectives that will provide the greatest protection of life and property that can be achieved with the resources available. In most situations, individual department personnel and equipment, in conjunction with personnel and equipment provided through preexisting mutual aid agreements, the State Fire Service Emergency Response Plan, and the Intrastate Mutual Aid Compact (ORC 5502.41) should be adequate enough to respond to any disaster.In <NAME OF JURISDICTION >, the National Incident Management System (NIMS)/ Incident Command System (ICS) is utilized at the scene of emergencies. Requests for assistance will be forwarded from the Incident Commander or his/her representative through the <NAME OF JURISDICTION> Dispatch Center or < NAME OF JURISDICTION > EOC to the Hamilton County Emergency Management & Homeland Security Agency (EMHSA) or the Cincinnati-Hamilton County Regional Operations Center (ROC), if activated. Once <NAME OF JURISDICTION > has exhausted all of its resources, including mutual aid, a local emergency will be declared so that state and federal resources may be made available.In large scale disasters multiple incident commanders may be present. The <NAME OF JURISDICTION > EOC will coordinate resource requests. The Hamilton County EMHSA or the ROC, if activated, is available for assistance and support during emergencies. Firefighting/EMS support needs can be met by contacting the Hamilton County EMHSA or the ROC. Concept of OperationsGeneral Overview In disaster situations, the functions and duties of the responders will mimic normal day-to-day operations with the addition of the following duties. These include utilization some type of public notification system and the dissemination of information pertaining to population protective actions including, if applicable, evacuation route information.First arriving apparatus will establish command, following the Incident Command System, and alert other responders regarding the status of the situation. The Incident Commander will then be responsible for advising decision makers about the risks associated with the threat and recommending methods for suppression.The <NAME OF JURISDICTION> Fire Chief is the primary agent for the Fire and EMS Function, unless those duties are delegated. He/she will coordinate with the Incident Commander at the site of the disaster and work with Fire and EMS Function support organizations to provide resources.In the event of an emergency that requires the activation of the Fire and EMS Function there will also be a need for large numbers of resources to coordinate such things as emergency sheltering, feeding sites, and other duties not previously assigned. These volunteers, for example American Red Cross, CERT, and amateur radio are activated and coordinated under Mass Care Function. When Fire and EMS resource requests exceed the local, county and established mutual aid resources, the Ohio Fire Chief’s Emergency Response Plan shall be activated. This plan was developed to bring large quantities of fire and EMS resources to an area in a timely manner. In order to activate the Ohio Fire Chief’s Emergency Response Plan.If the ROC is open, the request for activation of the plan is made through the ROC.In the event that the ROC is not open then the request is made directly to the Statewide Dispatch Center (888-822-4900) from the <NAME OF LOCAL DISPATCH>.Relationship Between Levels of GovernmentThe Fire and EMS Function representative will manage and coordinate firefighting activities between local, county, state, and federal agencies and departments. In non-emergency times, this person will be an advocate for preparedness training. Generally speaking, even in federally declared emergencies, most firefighting actions and support occur on a local, state, and intrastate level. Federal resources, such as the USDA – Forest Service, may be limited due to the fact that those same resources are being drawn upon on a national level rather than being available solely for a declared emergency site in a particular state. Therefore, it is paramount that mutual aid agreements are formalized on local, county, state and intrastate levels. anization and Assignment of Responsibility All Fire and EMS Function organizations are responsible for development of internal Standard Operating Guidelines (SOG) that support the Fire and EMS Function and EOC operations.Assignment of ResponsibilityThe <INSERT NAME OF DEPARTMENT WHO IS IDENTIFIED AS THE ORGANIZATION WHO WILL SERVE AS THE FIRE/EMS FUNCTION REPRESENTATIVE (NOTE: LIST ORGANIZATION IDENTIFIED IN THE CHART OF THE BASIC PLAN)> is the organization who fill the role of the Fire/EMS Function Representative. The Fire/EMS Function Representative will:Provide support to Incident Command and/or other EOC Functions.Coordinate with support agencies including those listed below to maintain an accurate overview of Fire and EMS activities.Coordinate with the County Emergency Support Function #4, if activated. Disseminate information that may be of value to other local Function representatives. This information sharing contributes to the response and recovery during an emergency/disaster of any type. Report or supplement staffing to the <NAME OF JURISDICTION> EOC upon its activation. The representative will report on the risks and activities related to the incident, including coordination of fire and rescue activities within affected disaster area(s).Brief other Function representatives on the status of incident related activities.Coordinate with the on-scene IC to assess the situation, including a determination of the area to which the incident might expand and an estimate of speed and direction of wind at the scene.Evaluate the overall community situation. Compare reports from the scene by the incident commander with those of other services to obtain a comprehensive assessment of the threat. This evaluation will provide a basis for determining effective courses of action tailored to the situation.In conjunction with the IC, begin planning for the acquisition of additional equipment and personnel that may be required to effectively respond to the emergency.Coordinate with the Water Department to maintain pressure to the hydrant system and address disruptions to the water supply.Coordinate with the Water Department to assist in obtaining additional water resources in < NAME OF JURISDICTION >.Begin developing secondary water supply contingencies, as needed.Review, and if directed by the IC, initiate plans for evacuation of risk areas as required. Designate exit routes for threatened citizens and entrance routes for Emergency Services. This is done in coordination with the Transportation Function, Information and Planning Function, Law Enforcement Function, and Public Information Function.Receive reports pertaining to causalities, injuries, damage observations, evacuation status, radiation levels, chemical exposures, and potential needs. <NAME OF JURISDICTION > of Public Works will:Provide equipment such as trucks, backhoes, loaders, dozers, etc. on an as needed basis.<NAME OF JURISDICTION > Engineer’s Office will:Assist in maintaining access to arterial roadway corridors for firefighting equipment.Provide equipment such as trucks, backhoes, loaders, dozers, etc. on an as needed basis. <NAME OF JURISDICTION> Water Department will:Maintain pressure to the hydrant system and address disruptions to the water supply.Assist in obtaining additional water resources in <NAME OF JURISDICTION>.Provide equipment such as trucks, backhoes, loaders, dozers, etc. on an as needed basis.<NAME OF JURISDICTION> Law Enforcement will:Provide traffic control.Security for firefighting and rescue operations, as needed.Maintain law and order.The Hamilton County Emergency Management & Homeland Security Agency / the Cincinnati-Hamilton County Regional Operations Center (ROC) will:Assist in coordinating resource support for the Fire and EMS Function response, as needed.Coordinate with Ohio EMA/EOC for support, as needed.V. Resource Requirements for the Fire and EMS Function:These organizations will also be responsible for providing necessary support to their personnel for food, water, fuel and emergency power.Each agency, department or jurisdiction shall be responsible for the maintenance of their own agreements, SOPs, SOGs, and MOUs.The Ohio Fire Chief’s Association shall maintain a county inventory of available fire and rescue resources within each jurisdiction. ................
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