Principles of
Emergency Planning
Prof. David Alexander
University of Florence

Emergency planning
is not
rocket science...

...it's a matter of common sense...

...and organisation!

The essence of disaster management:-
To tackle pressing needs with
maximum efficiency and speed but
with scarce resources and in the
absence of necessary information
BUT emergency planning is a young field that lacks
international consensus on standards, procedures,
the legal basis and institutional arrangements.

Population
(community) Plans,
protection procedures,
protocols
Disaster risk
reduction
Hazard
forecasting, Human
monitoring, Incident and material
etc. management resources

Emergency Emergency
procedures co-ordination
plan
Spontaneous
improvisation
Emergency
environment

The need for emergency planning:
• a serious lack of trained personnel,
materials, equipment and time
• decisions must be made rapidly
• information is a prime need
• inefficiency in disaster planning
means avoidable damage and casualties
• emergency assistance
cannot be well improvised.

The main objective of the plan is to
inform, instruct and direct participants
about what procedures and
emergency resources to use.

13 principles of
emergency planning

Principle no. 1
In an emergency the theatre of
operations is always the local area.
Local organisation and emergency planning
are fundamental and indispensable.

The challenges of emergency planning
Reducenunmet eneeds
u m et ne ds
Rationalise imported assistance
needs
and make pitrte d a s stimelye
im o more is ta n c
Q U A N T IT Y
Increase local
lo c a l s e lf-h e lp self-sufficiency
T IM E

Local incident Local response A
Threshold of local capacity
Small regional
Co-ordinated local response B
incident
Threshold of intermunicipal capacity
Major regional Intermunicipal and
B
incident regional response
Threshold of regional capacity
National Intermunicipal, regional
C
disaster and national response
Threshold of national capacity
International Ditto, with more
C
catastrophe international assistance

Microemergency: natural or
anthropogenic events that can
be tackled using the resources
and managerial skills of a single
organization or authority without
major changes in procedures,
materials and manpower
Catastrophe: natural, Macroemergency: natural
technological or social or anthropogenic
disasters that are large events that are large
and serious enough to enough to require
require extraordinary concerted action
measures which are beyond by more than one
the scope of local and many authority or organization
regional authorities to
provide and direct

Aid from outside the disaster area should
reinforce, not replace, local initiatives.
Main objectives: develop a state of local
self-sufficiency and maintain public order.
The bedrock level is the local authority:
higher levels of government should support
and harmonise local emergency responses.

Principle no. 2
In emergency planning efficiency
is measured in terms of lives saved
and damage avoided or contained.
shortage
reduced by
supply efficient
shortage mobilisation
urban SAR
supply
demand demand
time time
Disaster Disaster

Principle no. 3
The most efficient emergency preparedness
involves generic, all-hazards planning.
There should be only one plan and it
should be written in clear, simple language:
ambiguity can be dangerous.
Generalised Detailed
Details:
Synthesis:
Plan: data,
abbreviated
structure annexes,
plan
appendices

SUDDEN-IMPACT DISASTER OCCURS
Immediately
THE MAYOR the crisis
- goes to the Emergency Operations Centre begins
- makes contact with the regional authorities
- sends personnel to assembly areas
EMERGENCY SUPPORT FUNCTION DIRECTORS MUNICIPAL EMERGENCY
- go to the emergency operations room OPERATIONS CENTRE
- in the Town Hall
EMERGENCY SUPPORT FUNCTION OPERATORS
- go to the emergency operations centre and
follow the orders of the Mayor
MUNICIPAL WORKERS
ASSEMBLY POINTS
- Group A meets in --------- Street in front of Town Hall
AND AREAS
- Group B goes to the principal assembly area
----- Building
VOLUNTEERS OF THE "----- GROUP" ----- Street
- take control of the assembly areas ----- Square
----- Street
THE POPULATION ----- Building
- is led to the public assembly areas ----- Square
THE MUNICIPAL POLICE FORCE
- takes control of key points in the centre of town and
directs the population to the assembly points TOWN CENTRE
- sends situation reports periodically by radio
to the emergency operations centre

Principle no. 4
An emergency plan is an instrument
that is best created and maintained
by a qualified emergency planner
and is usually best housed in an
emergency operations centre.

Principle no. 5
The plan should be clear about
where, when and to whom it applies.
It should specify the
limits of its jurisdiction.

Principle no. 6
The plan should conform to regional,
national and international laws on civil
protection, environmental management,
health and safety, and so on.

Principle no. 7
Plans should be compatible between levels
of government, sectors and functions.
Plans should be integrated for government
agencies, hospitals, industrial sites,
airports, commercial concerns, etc.

HOSPITAL AIRPORT AND
AND HEALTH TRANSPORT
SYSTEM EMERGENCY
EMERGENCY PLANS
PLAN
REGIONAL AND
MUTUAL MUNICIPAL COUNTY OR NATIONAL
ASSISTANCE EMERGENCY PROVINCIAL EMERGENCY PLAN
PACTS PLAN EMERGENCY
PLANS
INDUSTRIAL
AND CULTURAL
COMMERCIAL HERITAGE
EMERGENCY EMERGENCY
PLANS PLAN

Disaster Co-ordinated
Disaster in EMS Disaster
in the system
the medical plans
of medical
centre
centres
Disaster
Disaster
Disaster in planning for
planning for
the external the system
the medical
environment of medical
centre
centres
Disaster
planning for
the external
environment

Hierarchical
Government, divisions
healthcare,
National,
commerce, etc.
regional,
Functional local, etc.
divisions
Division
and
integration
Geographical
Police, divisions
Ambulance, Catchments,
Fire, etc. jurisdictions,
Organisational areas, etc.
divisions

Principle no. 8
The plan should focus on saving lives and
reducing damage by matching urgent needs
with appropriate available resources.
Realism is necessary in emergency planning:
it is wrong to plan to use resources
that are not available.

Principle no. 9
Plans should be based on reference
scenarios of what is likely to happen.
Scenario methodology involves rigorous,
formal investigation of probable chains of
damaging events, plus their consequences
and what actions will be needed.
Emergency planning should be about
processes, not merely numbers.

hypothetical historical Scenario
ingredients analysis
methodology
initial reference time in emergency
conditions event zero planning
consequences evaluation of
at time 1 the progress
evolution of the scenario
consequences development
at time 2 of the
evolution scenario
consequences
at time n
formal evaluation of the
outcome of the scenario

Planning:
Likely event:
use reference
scenario
Improbable event:
use generic
procedures

Problems of
emergency
Chains of planning
causality
Interaction
between risks
Secondary
hazards
Collateral
vulnerability

Emergency planning for
what magnitude of disaster?
How did this...
...become this?

Physical Human
impact consequences
LARGE LARGE
SMALL SMALL

Rescuers'
Points of
assembly point
access to
Public
cordoned
assembly area
off areas
Incident
Cordon I
Only
rescuers
Cordon
Only authorised
III for personnel Cordon II
traffic
control Multi-agency
operations
Pedestrians only command.

Principle no. 10
The emergency planner should
conduct a census of resources
available for managing crisis situations.

Existence of various states
of hazard and vulnerability
Construction of operational
scenarios of hazard, risk, impact
adaptation of the plan
Processes of constant
and emergency response
Census of
available resources
Plan of action for
emergencies

Principle no. 11
Planning is about ensuring that every
participant has a valid role in the
emergency response and is aware of the
roles of other participants, especially
those from other organisations.

The essence of emergency management
is to be able to appreciate what other
agencies are doing or are expected to do.
This requires a common language and a
common culture: it also requires good
inter-organisational communication.

Principle no. 12
The emergency plan should apply to all
phases of the 'disaster cycle' and should
aim to provide sustainable civil protection.

Sustainable emergency management:-
• is centred upon the local level
(but is harmonised from above)
• has the support and
involvement of the population
• is based on plans that are fully
disseminated and frequently revised
• is a fundamental, every-day service
for the population and is taken seriously.

Principle no. 13
An emergency plan should be a living
document that is widely disseminated
and frequently tested and revised. It
should be the property of all participants.

Anatomy of an emergency plan

The emergency planning procedure:-
• research: carry out initial
study and collect data
• writing: create a plan,
appendices, annexes
• publicity: make the plan
known to all participants
• operations: test the plan with field
exercises, simulations, scenarios
• updating: revise the plan.

Fundamental components of the plan:-
• resources
• structures and organisations
• networks
• procedures
• tasks assigned.

Local emergency resources:-
• personnel and manpower
• vehicles and heavy plant
• equipment
• materials, consumable supplies, fuel
• services
• institutions and organisations.

Other emergency resources:-
• mutual aid pacts and agreements
• military assistance to
civil communities (MACC)
• regional and national resources.

Basic elements of the emergency plan:
• the participating organisations
• command structures
• communications channels
• emergency response procedures.

The ingredients of an emergency plan (1):
• explain the problem
• scenarios of hazard, vulnerability,
risk and impact
• inventory of available resources
• command centres and support functions
• describe monitoring, prediction and
warning systems and procedures.

The ingredients of an emergency plan (2):
• assign tasks to emergency workers
• communications protocols and procedures
• procedures for various eventualities
(breakages, interruptions and
unexpected problems)
• training and education initiatives.

Conclusions

Preparatory study
Creation and
Stakeholders'
updating Training
opinions
of plan
Revision
Dissemination Information
Exercising Evaluation
Activation Disaster

Feedback
and revision
Apparent
chaos Model
Plan
Testing
and revision
Feedback
Evalutation
Disaster
Result

Policies
Command systems
• operations centres
Plans • task forces
• communications
• chains of command
Procedures
Operations Results

UK: 3 commands, 4 levels
Police - Fire Services - Medical Services
[Diamond - policies]
Gold - strategies
Silver - tactics
Bronze - operations

LEAD GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENT OUTER Strategic
Public
CORDON level
enquiries
Temporary Strategic Co-ordinating Group
Mortuary Police Local authority
Fire Military forces Media
Ambulance Government advisors Centre
Casualty
Bureau Other agencies
Media
Survivor Liaison
Relatives’ Point
Reception
Reception
Centre
Centre
Local Authority
Receiving Voluntary Emergency Centre
Hospitals Agencies
Tactical
level
Body Incident Control Point Vehicle
Holding Ambulance Police Marshalling
Area Loading Fire Area
Point Ambulance Operational
Liaison level
Site of Disaster
Casualty Police
Clearing Fire
Station Ambulance
Specialist advisors
INNER CORDON

Emergency response
planning Incident
Permanent emergency plan
Contingency planning in
the pre-emergency phase (days)
Operational planning
Short-term strategic
planning (hours -> days)
Short-term tactical
planning (hours)

Permanent emergency plan
Aftermath
Monitoring Strategic,
prediction tactical & operational
& warning planning
Business continuity plan
Recovery and
reconstruction
planning
Disaster

Emergency planning and management
should be
fully programmed activities
based on a good estimation and accurate
knowledge of probable needs, but with
improvisation
to cope with unexpected developments:
we must reinforce the planned
activities and reduce the improvisation.

Available from:
www.terrapublishing.net
David.Alexander@unifi.it
emergency-planning.blogspot.com
www.slideshare.net/dealexander