CITY OF CROOKSTON BASIC PLAN

EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN REVISION: 5/1/2010
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I. REASON FOR PLAN

Tornados, floods, blizzards, and other natural disasters can affect the City of Crookston. In addition, major disasters such as train wrecks, explosions, hazardous material releases, pipeline leaks, plane crashes, and national security emergencies pose a threat to public health and safety in the City of Crookston. An emergency plan is necessary to ensure the protection of the public from the effects of these hazards.

II. PURPOSE, FORMAT AND SUMMARY OF PLAN

A. The City of Crookston has many capabilities and resources, which could be used in the response to any major disaster. These include the facilities, equipment, personnel and skills of both government and non-government professionals and groups in the City of Crookston. The purpose of this plan is to ensure the effective, coordinated use of these resources so as to:

1. Maximize the protection of life and property.
2. Ensure the continuity of government.

B. The City of Crookston Emergency Operations Plan is designed using the National Incident Management System (NIMS) structure. The EOC will operate under this structure. The plan will have five major parts consisting of Command, Finance/Administration, Logistics, Operations, and Planning.

The Command position will be the mayor, or his/her designee. The Public Information Officer and the Liaison Officer also fall under the Command section. The city council will have the overall Direction and Control of a citywide incident.

Supporting the Command Structure will be an Operations section staffed by several “response” type departments. The Crookston Police Chief or his/her designee will direct and coordinate Law Enforcement and Evacuation functions. The Crookston Fire Chief will direct Fire Suppression and Search and Rescue functions. The City Public Works Department will direct and coordinate Debris Clearance as well as coordinate the restoration of Utilities with private and government agencies. The Crookston Police Chief or his/her designee will coordinate the rescue and sheltering of stranded or abandoned pets.

The Plans section will encompass the Notification and Warning section and the Radiological/Hazardous Material (RHMP) section.

The Logistics section will be staffed by specialized personnel working with Congregate Care, Health and Medical, Purchasing Supplies/Materials and Animal Sheltering issues. A resource manual, which is part of this document, contains an inventory of equipment, and organizations that could be needed in the event of a major emergency/disaster. It also contains information that may be helpful to a variety of government officials. It is recognized that in most major disaster situations, the Polk County Emergency Operations Plan will be activated and that some Logistics section responsibilities will be coordinated at the county level.

The Finance section’s primary responsibility will be damage assessment and will be carried out primarily by the city clerk, building official and planning and zoning department. Additional staffing may be needed if there is a protracted disaster, as detailed accounting will be needed to account for staff time, materials and equipment usage. This information would be used to apply for any emergency benefits from the State or Federal government.

III. LEGAL BASIS AND REFERENCES

A. Public Law 920, as amended.

B. Public Law 99-499, Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act, (SARA) of 1986.

C. Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 12, as amended. (The Minnesota Civil Defense Act.)

D. Minnesota Statutes, Section 299K. (The Minnesota Emergency Planning Act and Community-Right-To-Know Act.)

E. Minnesota Statutes, Section 299J, as amended. (The Minnesota Pipeline Safety Act)

IV. ORGANIZATIONS

Existing government is the basis for emergency operations. That is, government agencies will perform emergency activities related to those they perform on a day-to-day basis as much as practical.

V. DIRECTION AND CONTROL

The direction and control of government operation from a central, protected facility with adequate communications and key personnel is essential to conduct emergency operations. The Crookston Police Department is the emergency operations center (EOC) for the city.

City Government - The Mayor of The City of Crookston will be responsible for providing overall direction and control of city government resources involved in response to a disaster. The Crookston EMD or Assistant EMD will act as a chief of staff for the mayor. The Crookston EMD or Assistant EMD will also be coordinating emergency operations as the Crookston EOC manager.

(For additional direction and control information such as staffing, communications, incident command system (ICS), etc., refer to the COMMAND section of this plan under Direction and Control.)

VI. EMERGENCY RESPONSIBILITY ASSIGNMENTS

A. A summary of the City of Crookston emergency responsibility assignments, by section and function are enclosed within this document. The heads of various city and county government departments and other agencies will be responsible for carrying out the assignments shown on the following chart. Additional information about these assignments is contained in the five sections of this plan. ALL CITY DEPARTMENTS AND OTHER AGENCIES ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP WHATEVER STANDARD OPERATING GUIDELINES (SOGs), RESOURCE LISTS, AND CHECK LISTS THEY MAY NEED IN ORDER TO CARRY OUT THESE RESPONSIBILITIES.

B. Responsibilities have been assigned by a code letter: P, S, or C.

1. P indicates primary operational responsibility, which means that the official or agency is in charge of, and responsible to make provisions for that function.

2. S indicates support responsibility, which means that the agency so assigned will, if possible, assist the official or agency, that has primary or coordination responsibility for that function.

3. C indicates coordination responsibility and is assigned when several agencies have a partial responsibility, but no single agency/official has obvious primary responsibility. This will often time be the situation when non-government agencies are involved.

4. As a general rule, city officials will be primarily responsible for carrying out emergency functions inside the city limits of Crookston and other municipal or county officials will have the corresponding responsibility outside the city limits of Crookston.

5. Only one P and/or C can be assigned per function and a minimum of one S should be assigned for each function.

EMERGENCY RESPONSIBILITY ASSIGNMENTS

Code: P = Primary, S = Support, C = Coordinate

COMMAND SECTION

Direction and Control P- Mayor/City Council

Emergency Public Information P- Mayor/Mayor’s designee/Administrator

Liaison P - Crookston EMD

OPERATIONS SECTION

Search and Rescue
C - Crookston EMD
P - Crookston Fire Dept
S - Crookston Police Dept
S - Polk County Sheriff Dept

Evacuation and Traffic Control
P - Crookston Police Dept
S - Public Works
S - Polk County Sheriff Dept
S - MN State Patrol

Fire Protection
P - Crookston Fire Dept
S - Crookston Police Dept
S - Great Plains EMS

Debris Clearance
P - Crookston Public Works Dept
S - Polk County Highway Dept
S - MN Dept of Transportation (DOT)

Utilities Restoration
P - Municipal and Private Companies
C - Crookston Public Works Dept

PLANNING SECTION

Notification and Warning
P - Crookston EMD
S -Polk County Sheriff Dept

Radiological/HAZMAT
P - Crookston Fire Dept
S - Crookston Police Dept
S -Polk County Sheriff Dept
S - Polk County EMD

LOGISTICS

Congregate Care
P - Polk County Social Services
S - American Red Cross
S -Salvation Army

Health/Medical
P -Polk County Health Services
S - Local Hospitals, Clinics, Ambulance Services

FINANCE

Damage Assessment
C - Crookston EMD
P - Crookston Building Official/Planning & Zoning
S - City Clerk
S - Polk County Assessor


VII. OPERATIONS POLICIES

A. In the event of a major disaster, the Mayor of the City of Crookston may declare a local emergency. Such a declaration will invoke necessary portions of this plan and will permit the city to take such action as may be necessary to protect lives and property within the City of Crookston. In addition, any or all parts of the plan may be implemented whenever it is deemed necessary in order to provide public safety.

B. Protection of life and property and alleviation of human distress is the primary goal of city government emergency operations.

C. In an emergency affecting more than one political jurisdiction, officials of all jurisdictions involved will coordinate their services to the maximum extent possible. This coordination will be accomplished through the Polk County EOC and EOP

D. The Crookston EMD will assist in providing resource coordination between government agencies and people in the private sector.

E. Maximum city government resources must be utilized before county, state or federal assistance can be requested and made available. Mutual aid agreements between fire departments within the county are on file with the respective fire departments.

F. Each agency, department or service of city government will provide for the maintenance of records during an emergency including those records deemed essential for continuing governmental operations. These records should include work hours, equipment hours, supplies and materials used, injuries to personnel, and damage to public facilities and equipment

VIII. COUNTY, STATE AND FEDERAL SUPPORT

A. General - The Polk County EMD will be responsible for assisting the county or any requesting city in obtaining any state or federal government resources that may be needed as a result of a disaster. In carrying out this responsibility, the Polk County EMD will contact the MN Dept of Public Safety, Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM). A summary of state and federal disaster assistance that may be available is contained in Disaster Management Handbook available on the HSEM web site.

B. Emergency Assistance - In the event of a major emergency/disaster which exceeds the resources and capabilities of city government and which requires immediate county, state and/or federal assistance, the state duty officer will be contacted at 1-800-422-0798.

C. National Guard - When a natural disaster or other major emergency is beyond the capability of local government, support from the National Guard may be available. Only the governor, as commander-in-chief of the Minnesota National Guard, has the authority to activate the Guard. The purpose is to ensure the preservation of life and property and to support civil law enforcement authorities.

1. Operational Policies

A. National Guard assistance will complement, and not be a substitute for county and/or city participation in emergency operations.

B. If made available, National Guard personnel will remain under military command at all times, but will support and assist county and/or city forces in the accomplishment of a specific task or tasks.

2. Request Procedures

The County SHERIFF is the only governmental official in Polk County authorized to submit a request to the governor for National Guard assistance. Such requests are to be submitted to the state duty officer.


IX. PLAN DEVELOPMENT/MAINTENANCE, TRAINING AND EXERCISES

A. With regard to this plan, the Crookston EMD will serve as the planning coordinator. As such, the EMD will have overall authority and responsibility for both the development and maintenance of the plan.

B. This plan will be reviewed and updated as changes occur, but be made at least annually. The Crookston EMD will be responsible for ensuring that this updating occurs.

C. This plan will be distributed to all city departments and agencies, which have emergency assignments in the event of a major disaster in the City of Crookston. A plan distribution list will be maintained by the EMD.