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More
about Emergency Management
Emergency management is an ongoing process, with four major
components forming an integrated cycle: mitigation,
preparedness, response,
and recovery.
Emergency management training and education
Mitigation
The most cost-effective component of emergency management,
mitigation reduces hazards or minimizes exposure to them, thus
lessening their overall impact. Although the best mitigation is
done before an event occurs, much mitigation is initiated during the
recovery phase (e.g., structures can be repaired/rebuilt to higher
safety standards or relocated to safer ground) Mitigation efforts include:
- Building codes and retrofitting
- Non-structural improvements (i.e., protecting building contents
as opposed to the structures themselves)
- Land-use controls
- Flood-plain buyouts
- Levees and stream channel modifications
- Slope stabilization
- Improving chemical storage facilities or reducing hazardous
inventory
- Public education and other prevention programs
Project Impact, a
FEMA-funded program at the local level, was created to generate
public-private partnerships at the local level to "Build
disaster-resistant communities." Several area counties, including Multnomah
and Clackamas,
received Project Impact grants. TVF&R was an active
participant, representing the Clackamas County Fire Defense Board, in
developing the Clackamas County
Natural Hazard Mitigation
Plan - the first in the nation to be approved!
Washington County has successfully adopted a Natural
Hazard Mitigation Plan as well.
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Preparedness
Thorough preparedness picks up where mitigation leaves
off. For hazards that cannot be mitigated, preparedness should minimize
disaster impact and generate effective response. Preparedness
includes:
- Disaster and contingency plans
- Government and business continuity of operations plans
- Warning and emergency communications systems
- Evacuation plans with predesignated routes
- Equipment upgrades
- Mutual aid agreements
- Training and exercises
- Public information and education
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Response
The response is mostly reactive,
addressing emergency needs once an incident has occurred. Response
includes:
- Warning system activation (sirens, TV/radio broadcasts)
- Emergency medical, fire, police
- Activation of emergency operations centers (EOCs)
- Mutual aid (local, state, and federal, including National Guard and
specialized teams)
- Disaster declarations and implementation of emergency statutes
- Chemical release containment
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Recovery
Recovery, the process of "getting back to normal,"
starts while response is still going on, and may include mitigation. Although many people think of
recovery as shelters and financial assistance (low-interest loans,
grants, insurance settlements), there are many other components,
including:
- Longer-term temporary housing
- Debris removal, including demolition of unsafe structures
- Continuity of government, business
- Economic aid to offset business losses
- New land-use controls (e.g., floodplain easements,
reforestation)
- Re-establishment of essential services
- Health and safety education
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