Emergency Communication Center

State twenty-four-hour emergency communications center telephone... 

The initial reports of an unusual incident should arouse the suspicion of the Emergency Communication Center (911). If there are any suspicions, the dispatcher should report a possible terrorist attack or at least an unusual event to public safety responders so they can be prepared. When the unit is dispatched, the dispatcher should advise them of any significant call history or advisories attached to the location (prior attacks on responders, known location of dangerous group). Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) can facilitate this data. Those agencies without CAD will have to rely on dispatcher or responder memory. However, initial reports may not be suspicious and first responders to a terrorist attack may not be aware of the danger. 

Earthquakes have caused disruption of the services provided by essential facilities such as hospitals, emergency communications centers, and fire stations. For the functions of these facilities to be available in the post-earthquake setting, the structure must perform safely and key nonstructural components must be protected. In addition to these engineering approaches, emergency response planning is necessary to identify off-site lifeline systems that could be disrupted by the earthquake, because a facility may need backup systems and supplies to contend with outages to the region s water, power, and transportation systems. 

Functional drill The purpose of a functional drill is to test an individual component of the emergency response plan. The drill could test the communication system, emergency operations center, evacuation, or the shelter-in-place plan. 12 months... 

Upon activation of ICS Gain status of situation Determine if evacuation or shelter-in-place is required Determine emergency level (0,1, or 2) Notify Communications Center of emergency response level (0,1, or 2) If evacuation/shelter-in-place is required, notify Communications Center Determine what resources need to be mobilized Determine if Mutual Aid is required Incident Commander... 

Activate appropriate plant emergency alarm Communication Center... 

Activate emergency response notification system based on emergency response level Communications Center... 

Communicate with Unit/Facility Management or Emergency Operations Center (EOC) if activated Incident Commander... 

Update of current situation/response and status of other area hospitals, emergency management/local emergency operation centers, and public health officials and other community response agencies... 

Establish communication with other hospitals, local Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and/or local response agencies (e.g., public health). Report current hospital status. ... 

It took 3 weeks for electricity to be restored to our entire community. Many lessons were learned, not only by our hospital, but by the community as well. As a community, we now have a redundant communication process, we have developed a Joint Communication Center, we have updated the Emergency Response Plan to emphasize coordination between agencies, and we have developed a Citizen Corp organization for better emergency planning. 

An excellent home family preparedness measure is to identify a distant relative or friend who can be the emergency message center. Employees maybe able to call a relative from work to find out their family is safe and sound. Disasters that impair telephone communications teach us that it is often possible to make and receive long distance calls when a call across the street will not get through. Business emergency planners should not overlook this hint. A location in another city, or a key customer or supplier may make a good out-of-area emergency contact. 

The Emergency Control Center is often located at the primary refuge or muster area. The Center may not have full control room capability, but it must be provided with the equipment and instrumentation needed to bring the facility into a safe condition, to communicate with outside parties, and to coordinate the evacuation of personnel. 

The agencies notified in the event of a reportable release operate as an emergency response network to deploy appropriate emergency assistance in the event of a chemical release. The National Response Center (NRC), located at the United States Coast Guard Headquarters, is the national communications center continuously manned for handling activities related to response actions. The NRC acts as the single federal point of contact for all pollution incident reporting. 

For an effective response, the emergency activities must take place at a rapid pace and in high volume, while ensuring continuous operation of critical infrastructure, such as communications, power generation, and water and sanitation services. The local emergency operations center (EOC) and, most likely,... 

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