The document discusses the vulnerabilities of a critical rail line in Plainsville, Colorado, which transports hazardous materials essential for manufacturing nuclear defect x-ray material in Southtown. Concerns arise over the aging infrastructure and potential catastrophic outcomes, leading Mayor Witley to propose a task force to analyze risks and recommend actions for prevention and response. The document requests a list of potential organizations to join the commission, detailing their value and expertise in public safety and emergency management.

1. Consider, hypothetically, a small community called Plainsville,
Colorado, which has a critical rail line running through it. On
this line, hazardous chemicals are routinely transported en route
to a neighboring community (Southtown) where they are crucial
for industrial use in manufacturing a certain type of nuclear
defect x-ray material that is made nowhere else in the world.
The rail line was first laid in the late 1800s and has been
patchily maintained over its life.
Given new priorities through Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) Grant Programs and state mandates, both the Plainsville
community leaders and operators of the railway are concerned
with increasing vulnerabilities associated with rail transport
because there is evidence of structural decline due to its age and
uneven maintenance. Serious damage to, or degradation of, the
line in the vicinity of Plainsville might be catastrophic with
worst-case consequences including: irreparable destruction of
the rail; a train derailment; a chemical spill; the creation of a
hazardous environment for people, livestock, and agriculture;
disruption of the industrial manufacturing in Southland; and the
possible economic crippling of the entire area. Any of these
components alone could result in a crisis; yet a combination of
these, or if combined in totality, would be a scenario considered
unimaginable by Plainsville’s leadership and emergency
management personnel.
By way of background, Plainsville has a "strong" mayor,
meaning she is elected by the people rather than chosen by a
council, etc. Based upon DHS grant dollars that have trickled
down through her state and all-hazards homeland security
region, Mayor Witley has determined that a commission in the
form of a short-term task force should look at the vulnerabilities
associated with the rail line. The commission would take the
scenario outlined above, consider its many variations, study
possible consequences while articulating and researching the
problem(s) and receiving testimony from experts, and then make
recommendations about courses of action to prevent, mitigate,

2. or respond to any resultant crisis.
The issues at hand for the community include the integrity of
the rail line, the prevention of a hazardous spill, the safety of
the citizens, and the continuity of the neighboring town’s
industry. (More issues may exist, but this gets you started.)
Consider and list at least 10 potential organizations that would
either provide a representative to sit on the commission or that
would provide information to the commission.
When listing each partner, describe his, her, or its value to the
commission and what expectations the mayor (and others) might
have as to the expertise, capabilities, resources, or anything else
an individual or agency might contribute.
Choose the most relevant entities or individual experts you can,
and think about everything from a public safety and emergency
management perspective.
Your answer may require research and properly cited references
in APA format.