Issue Brief 1 - Disaster Planning & Recovery: 9-1-1 Center Survivability

• NCJ Number: 224935
• Author(s): John F. Walker
• Date Published: May 2007
• Length: 8 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2004-IN-WX-K002
• Sponsoring Agency: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)
• Corporate Author: SEARCH - National Consortium for Justice Information and Statistics
• Sale Source: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Technical Assistance
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Issue Brief of the COPS Interoperable Communications Technology Program, N 1, May 2007; downloaded November 26, 2008.

Annotation

This report identifies and discusses issues that must be addressed in preparing 9-1-1 call centers for disasters that may involve sudden and extreme changes in operational capability or require evacuation.

Abstract

In preparing for worst-case scenarios, 9-1-1 centers must take two steps. First, prepare policies and directives that specify actions and procedures for events that may adversely affect operations. Second, establish “continuity-of-business” practices for responding to, recovering from, and mitigating the effects of various types of disabling events. Policies and directives should address emergency planning in preparation for a tornado; fire; earthquake; flood; or chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive event. Such planning should include the establishment of call-back processes whereby employees are notified by phone or e-mail when events occur. As an alternative, employees should be required to physically report at the center or a predetermined remote location. Policies should also take into consideration the families of center employees and the need for emergency supplies and services, including medical care and necessary medicines for on-duty workers. Essential operational documents should be accessible both by computer and hard copy. Centers should hold routine disaster preplanning discussions and training that include determining who needs to talk to whom under various conditions and how first-responders will communicate with those needing help during the incident, particularly if communications capabilities cease or are severely limited. A risk management plan should be developed in order to identify the most critical components of the 9-1-1 center‘s infrastructure; for example, radio master controller, site generator, and battery backup time limits. For detailed guidance on planning discussed in this report, the author recommends the Law Enforcement Tech Guide, which provides a step-by-step process in identifying and managing critical business practices.