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Disaster Operations: A Handbook for Local Government

NCJ Number
138383
Date Published
1981
Length
179 pages
Annotation
The five chapters of this handbook, intended primarily for smaller municipalities and counties, cover planning for emergency operations; developing a basic plan for major emergencies; using the supporting maps, charts, and supplementary information necessary to carry out emergency operations; and learning the actions that the chief executive and the designated public information representative should take in any major emergency and various specific types of emergencies such as floods and hurricanes.
Abstract
This handbook applies to those major emergency situations that require a government to coordinate and direct the operations of many, if not all, of the emergency services available in the community. It is the need for coordinated emergency operations that distinguishes disasters or major emergencies from the emergencies handled daily by local fire and police forces or hospitals and doctors. Specific requirements for emergency readiness include: an emergency operating control center where local executives can direct and control emergency operations, preparatory planning on the part of local government executives and community leaders as to what to do if the community is threatened or hit by various types of disaster, and a readiness to give emergency instructions and information to their citizens.