Coshocton County Emergency Operations Plan
DISASTER RECOVERY
I. PURPOSE
The purpose of this annex is to document the stepsand processes Coshocton County will take to recover from an emergency / disaster byrecovery of support services and removal of debris.
II. SITUATION
Local government has the primary responsibility for organizing recovery resources.
When resources within the county are exhausted, supplemental assistance maybe requested from the State and Federal Government.
III. CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS
1. Damage Assessment
When Coshocton County is affected by an emergency/disaster, EMA will:
a. EMA will seek to identify the latest status of county roads, bridges and culverts prioritize recovery and direct resources to restore the facility.
b.A Declaration of Emergency will be made by the CountyCommissioners or the local jurisdiction after local resources have been exhausted and additional assistance is still needed.
c. The EMA and Red Cross have damage assessment teams that will assist homeowners, renters, businesses, government and private-non-profit organizations using a damage assessment form.
d. EMA will be the clearinghouse for all damage assessment forms. EMA will check each form to ensure that all needed information is filled out and correct before submitting it to the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OEMA).
e.EMA will contact the OEMA within 12-36 hours of the disaster and submit an initial damage assessment report to include the specific state and/or federal assistance needed. Forms for with damage assessment are found in the Handbook of Emergency Forms.
See Assistance Toolboxfor the procedures and forms for damage assessment. The publication, from Ohio EMA, is in the reference bookcase of the EOC.
f. EMA will designate a Debris Manager who will identify, prioritize and coordinate response for recovering the county infrastructure.
2. Debris Management
The Debris Manager will manage and coordinate the Debris Management Team with assistance from:
Coshocton CountyEngineer- county roads
Township Trustees- township roads
CoshoctonCity Service Director- CoshoctonCity Streets
Public volunteers- as needed
Local contractors- as needed
Outside Coshocton County resources:
Mutual aid agreements
Ohio Department of Transportation
Ohio Health Department
National Guard
Federal resources:FEMA
Special Debris Removal Considerations for:
Drainage structures
Reservoirs
Natural streams
Roadways
Recreational and wilderness Areas
Public buildings
Private buildings
Health hazards
Appearance nuisance
Environment compliance
The Disaster Management Team coordinating removal with the EOC will set priorities based upon location and situation.
First priority should be critical service facilities such as sheriff’s office, hospital, and fire department.
Second priority should be public facilities such as municipal buildings, water and sewer treatment plants, power generation plants and airports.
This information will be provided to the public via radio, cable television, and newspapers.
All agencies involved with the restoration of public utilities should keep in mind the consequences of their actions when dealing with the preservation of historical property, buildings, and monuments.
IV. ORGANIZATION AND ASSIGNMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES
The EMA Director:
Assist with identification of priority infrastructure facilities, i.e. Sheriff, fire, hospital buildings
Coordination of recovery resources
Sourcing for new resources when needed
Provide public status information via the PIO officer
Public Works Coordinator:
Develop the priority task list with help from the Damage Assessment Teams
Coordinate work with utility (gas, electric, telephone, cable) companies to establish restoration priorities See the 4.Emergency Reference Directory for listing of utilities and contact information.
Provide a continuous communication to the EMA Director for status, new requirements, and areas ready for reentry.
Red Cross:
Assess damage to owners, renters, businesses and governmental property owners.
Assist with form completion for form filers.
Manage shelters for residents who are displaced by damage, loss of or utility services.
Damage Assessment Team:
Identification of priority infrastructure objects
Assess damage to owners, renters, businesses and governmental property owners.
Assist with form completion for form filers.
Township and CountyResources:
Clear roads
Collection and transportation of debris
County Health Department:
Identification of Temporary Debris Storage and Reduction Sites (TDSR) debris holding areas for: trees, building materials, and household waste.
Identify structures that are damaged and unsafe
Inspect water and waste facilities to be certain they are safe before resuming operations. (Forty percent of the county's population has private wells and septic systems.)
Identify health hazards in solid waste
Identify health hazards in construction waste and debris
Identify health hazards in infectious waste
Declare restaurant food safe
Declare grocery store food safe
Issue permits or regularity authorization papers for:
Haulers of debris
Haulers of potable water
Septic pumpers
City Health Department:
Issue permits or regularity authorization papers for:
Haulers of potable water
Septic pumpers
Fire Departments:
Identify structures that are damaged and unsafe
Hazmat Team:
Identify health hazards in hazardous waste
Identify health hazards in radiological waste
V DOCUMENTATION
It will be the responsibility of public entities to prepare their own documentation and forward it to the EMA Office consolidation prior to being sent to Ohio EMA. EMA will be responsible for documentation within the EOC. Each agency/organization should document costs incurred from the beginning of the emergency. The documentation of all costs is extremely important.
Documentation should include:
• A summary of the incident (what, when, where, why, how it happened)
• Response actions taken
• Who responded
• Economic Impact
• Equipment expenses
• Labor expenses
• Supply expenses
• Lessons Learned
Documentation may be used as historical record, to address insurance needs, assist in cost recovery, and develop future mitigation efforts. The EMA will acquire all documentation and prepare an official summary of the disaster for the historical record of the county.
VI. PLAN DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE
See Basic Plan, Section 2.3 Plan Development and Maintenance
VII. AUTHORITIES AND REFERENCES
Assistance Toolbox Ohio Emergency Management Agency August 20, 2005
FEMA Policy and Guidelines for Public Assistance
9523.13Debris Removal from Private Property (10/23/05)
VIII. ADDENDUM
Tab 1 - Debris Removal
Tab 2 - Ohio EPA Information / Debris Management Contacts
Tab 3 - Debris Site Evaluation
Tab 4 - Contracting Office Responsibilities, Contract Types, Contract Monitoring
Tab 5 - Demolition Checklist - Public and Private Buildings
Tab 6 -Debris Reduction Information - (burning-grinding - chipping - recycling)
Tab 7 - Temporary Debris Storage and Reduction Site Closeout Checklist
Tab 8 - Damage Assessment Team
Tab 9 - FEMA Cost recovery for Pet Evacuations and Sheltering
XI AUTHENTICATION
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Fred Wachtel, Coshocton County EngineerDated
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James T. Van Horn, DirectorDated
Coshocton County Emergency Management Agency
Tab 1 - Debris Removal
I. PURPOSE
This document will define roles, responsibilities, and procedures and provide guidance for development and implementation of actions involved in managing debris removal.
.
II. SITUATION AND ASSUMPTIONS
Local government is the first to respond to a disaster.
Response efforts are first directed to activities that protect lives, public health and safely, such as evacuations, sheltering, utility restoration and clearing of debris from roads and other areas.
Public works departments will be responsible for the debris removal function from roadways and work in conjunction with other support agencies such as utility companies, litter control, waste management, trucking companies and contractors to facilitate debris clearance, reduction, and disposal following a disaster.
III. CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS
The Coshocton County Litter Control Program Manager will manage and coordinate debris management in time of disaster.
The Coshocton County Engineer is responsible for debris removal function from county highways. Township Trustees are responsible for township road clearance. The Coshocton City Service Director has responsibilities for the City of Coshocton streets. The operations element of the debris management program will focus on three phases.
1. Mud, sediment and debris removal from roads and streets
2. Household debris
3. Building demolition debris
This phased approach is a four-step cycle that includes
Normal operations,
Increased readiness,
Response and
Recovery.
1. Increased readiness in some instances will allow for a period of warning. In this case, time may be available to alert personnel and ensure roles and responsibilities are understood. Review existing resources, and other debris management activities.
2. Response to a disaster is a very important step for setting the tone on how the recovery will go. The Debris Management Team should coordinate from the EOC. Removal priorities should be set due to the situation and location. Debris could include fallen trees, limbs, trash, furniture, food waste, scrap tires, utility poles, wires, vehicles, building materials, hazardous materials, infectious materials, animal carcasses, silt and mud, etc.
First priority should be the roadways that allow ingress and egress to the critical public facilities such as fire stations, sheriff's office, hospital, and other critical facilities.
Second priority affects other essential, but not critical facilities such as schools, municipal buildings, water treatment plant, wastewater treatment plant, power generation units, airports, temporary shelters for disaster victims, etc.
3. Recovery of the debris management cycle includes actions to complete the debris removal, reduction, and disposal activities, based on damage assessment of the disaster.
Actions necessary for recovery from debris-generating events include:
a. Public Property Rights-Of-Way Debris Removal: Debris deposited on public lands including the right-of-way will be the responsibility of local government. In some cases, where a health and/or safety threat exists, private property owners may move event-related debris to the public right-of-way for removal by government forces. Government forces or volunteers may assist private property owners if necessary to remove event-related debris that poses a health and/or safety threat.
b. Private Property Debris Removal: Debris deposited on private property is the responsibility of the property owner. The plan must include procedures for notifying the public of debris removal schedules. The key is to provide all information regarding pickup times and locations for private property owners so that debris removal activities proceed efficiently. The county should also provide instructions to the property owners for separation of debris and steps to follow if they are unable to put debris from their property on the curbside or other area for pickup. The county, township, city or village may utilize volunteers or volunteer groups to assist property owners.
Debris removal operations will usually include curbside pickup service, which will be conducted either by the local public works or by a contractor. Contractors operate under contracts such as time and materials, unit price or lump sum. Public employees and contractors will pick up debris and haul it to either a temporary debris removal site or a regulated waste facility.
c. Hazardous Waste Removal: Procedures for handling hazardous waste removed from commercial operations must meet criteria set by the Federal and State environmental protection agencies to ensure proper removal and disposal of hazardous waste has been made. Procedures for establishing separate staging areas for hazardous waste must be set to include lining with an impermeable material so chemicals do not leak into the groundwater and soil.
d. Locations of Existing Facilities: Facility locations Temporary Debris Storage andReduction sites (TSDR) would include landfills, transfer facilities, scrap tire storage areas, composting facilities and recycling facilities. Alternative sites need to be identified in case of interruption of normal operations impacted by the disaster. Qualified contractors who assist in debris removal are listed in the Emergency Resource Catalog.
In some cases, disaster response activities will require entering private property to remove debris that is a threat to the health and safety of occupants. The county, township, city and villages will evaluate and select locations on government owned property, if possible, to take the debris.
MUTUAL AID AGREEMENTS- exist between the County Commissioners and other surrounding county commissioners to assist each other in time of emergency and need. These resources can be used to quickly augment local forces, however, in many instances disasters affect more than one county and those other affected counties may have their resources and equipment committed. In most cases these type disasters would require a declaration and more assistance from outside sources might be available such as National Guard and other volunteer groups such as i.e., Citizens Conservation Corp.
VOLUNTEERS- historically have played a significant role in large-scale debris removal operations. Volunteer organizations can assist private property owners and may provide some financial assistance in the removal of debris from private property if approached. Additionally, community civic groups may also rise to the occasion.
To provide for maximum utilization of these resources, community leaders need be prepared to organize volunteer groups and keep the debris management staff informed of their activities. Documentation of volunteers must be accounted for as to who they are, who they represent, what their assignment is, what time they work, and when do they stop work. Sponsoring organizations should ensure that personnel are properly equipped and that common sense safety precautions are followed.
LOCAL CONTRACTORS- can provide labor and equipment for debris clearance. Removal and disposal should or can be made available from Coshocton area contractors. Following a major disaster, emergency contracts can be executed to augment local account resources. Immediately following a disaster, engineering personnel on the debris management staff should explore alternative management staff and courses of action.
BEYOND LOCAL CAPABILITIES - Coshocton County could have an incident that overwhelms their capability to respond. The State Emergency Management Agency would be the next level of assistance by declaring that CoshoctonCounty would be in a state of emergency. The EMA Director, through the County Commissioners, or Mayor of a village, if incident were contained to that jurisdiction only, would declare. That declaration would go to the State EMA and then on to the Governor. If a Presidential Declaration is warranted, the Governor would ask for the Federal level of assistance.
STATE RESOURCES - Many state resources may be utilized in time of disaster depending on whether there is a county declaration. Those could be resources from the Ohio Department of Transportation, Ohio Health Department and the Ohio National Guard.
FEDERAL RESOURCES - Resources from the Federal level could assist local efforts once a Federal Declaration has been made. A Federal Coordinating Officer is appointed who is responsible for coordinating all Federal disaster assistance programs administered by FEMA, other Federal agencies and voluntary organizations. The work that can be performed under this authority is limited to emergency work and debris removal under Sections 402 (4), 403 and 407 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief Act.
FEMA debris eligibility funds may be used for debris clearance, removal and disposal operations. Debris that may be eligible for clearance, removal, and disposal operations could include trees, gravel, building wreckage, vehicles and personal property. The debris must be a direct result of the declared event, must occur within the designated time of the disaster and must be the responsibility of the applicant at the time of disaster. Debris removal may be eligible for Federal funding when it:
• Eliminates immediate threats to lives, public health and safety
• Eliminates immediate threats of significant damage to improved public / private property;
• Ensures economic recovery of the affected areas to the benefit of the community-at-large
DEBRIS REMOVAL FROM PUBLIC PROPERTY ELIGIBILITY FOR FUNDS - Debris that is on public property must be removed to allow continued safe operation of government functions. Debris that is blocking streets and roadways is a threat to public health and safety because it blocks passage of emergency vehicles or blocks access to emergency facilities such as the hospitals.
Debris in a stream or flood channel may cause flooding in the future. If such flooding would cause an immediate threat of damage to improved property, removal of the debris only to the extent necessary to protect against an event that could reasonably be eligible. Removal of fallen trees in a forested or wilderness area is not eligible.
DEBRIS REMOVAL FROM PRIVATE PROPERTY- Private property is treated differently from public property. Debris removal is the responsibility of the individual property owner, aided by insurance settlements and assistance from volunteer agencies or groups. FEMA assistance does not reimburse private property owners for cost of removal from their property. However, local efforts may provide a curb or roadside pick up at no cost to the property owner.
If the debris on private business and residential property is so widespread that public health, safety, or economic recovery of the community is threatened, the actual removal of debris from private property may be eligible.
DEBRIS REMOVAL FROM DRAINAGE STRUCTURES may have to meet certain criteria as follows:
Reservoirs - Removal of disaster-related debris from reservoirs may be eligible if evidence is provided FEMA that the reservoirs were regularly cleaned prior to the disaster and the pre-disaster level may be established. In addition, removal of debris that poses an immediate threat of clogging or damaging intake or adjacent structures may be eligible.
Natural Streams - Debris removal from natural streams normally are not eligible for assistance. Only debris that causes a threat to lives or public health and safety or damage to improved property from an event that could be reasonably expected to occur within 5 years is eligible. Any work in natural streams must also be closely reviewed and monitored to minimize undesirable environmental effects. This type of work often requires a Clean Water Act — Section 404 permit from the United Stated Corps of Engineers, (USACE). The