Emergency Preparedness: Expanding to an All-Hazards Approach

September 29, 2009, 5:48 p.m.: A magnitude 8.0 earthquake strikes in the Samoan Islands and washes a 53-ft.-above sea level tsunami over Poloa, American Samoa, minutes later. Six hours and 37 minutes later, tidal gauges 4,392 miles away at Kahului, Maui, Hawaii, record a tsunami surge of just over 1 foot above sea level. At just under 12 hours elapsed time, tidal gauges 8,475 miles away in La Push, Washington, on the northwest corner of the continental United States, measure a tsunami surge of about six inches above sea level.

Officials in California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia surely watched anxiously, then breathed a sigh of relief as the NOAA Pacific Tsunami Warning Center broadcast, then quickly canceled a tsunami warning for the West Coast. In Tokeland, WA, about 50 miles as the seagull flies to the south of La Push, the Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe launched a community-wide evacuation exercise to again test its emergency preparedness system.

The Shoalwater Bay Tribe began developing its emergency preparedness program in 2005. In 2007, winter storms that damaged buildings and cut off this coastal community from outside help offered a chance to rehearse its preparations. The first full-scale community evacuation drill was held in 2006. (See Tribal Preparedness from the February 2008 issue of EMS Magazine.)

FROM TSUNAMIS TO ALL-HAZARDS

As successful as that first community-wide drill was, the tribe didn't stop there. Emergency manager and tribal elder Lee Shipman continued leading efforts to improve their preparedness. Initial plans were aimed at protection from their gravest threats--earthquakes and tsunamis. As the Samoa experience proves, these threats can originate anywhere in the Pacific Rim.

After the 2006 drill, the Tribe made improvements to its original planning and began expanding to encompass an "all-hazards" mitigation capability. The original planning team has morphed into a dedicated part of the Tribe's infrastructure. In addition, more and more officials and residents of the surrounding communities are getting involved on behalf of the Tribe and in their own towns.

After four Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) trainings, an estimated 80% of the Shoalwater Bay Tribe and family members living on or near the reservation are now trained. Training sessions have been opened to the general public in surrounding communities as well. In the most recent class, 39 attendees came from Westport, North Cove, Tokeland and other remote areas.

Eagle Hill Road and the Annex high-ground evacuation sites have been improved with further development of landing areas at 300' and 160' above sea level, respectively. A $481,000 Indian community development block grant has been secured to build a shelter at the 300-ft. level up Eagle Hill Road, where the Tribe will be able to store supplies, conduct training exercises and shelter up to 250 people when completed. Additional grant funding is being sought for communications and other equipment with the goal of locating an emergency operations center in the building as well. Eventually, the Tribe hopes to build a helipad for medical evacuation and supplies delivery.

Using old logging roads, routes have been established from high-ground evacuation sites to points further inland. In the event of an extended (more than 14 days) evacuation, people would be able to access U.S. Highway 101 and population centers further inland.

MAP YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD

Original plans called for distinctive markings on homes with occupants who could not self-evacuate in an emergency, but there was concern that the markings would make them individual targets. Since then, the Tribe has used Washington's "Map Your Neighborhood" program to provide block captains with valuable information in a more secure fashion. In another ripple effect from Tribal efforts on the reservation, the nearby communities of Tokeland, Grayland, North Cove and Westport have embarked on their own Map Your Neighborhood program (see sidebar below).

Three-day emergency kits and fire extinguishers have been provided to all homes on the reservation and most have NOAA radios. Block captains and co-captains also carry NOAA radios and can notify their areas of any warnings.

COMMUNICATIONS UPGRADES

Shipman credits Tokeland native, U.S. Navy veteran and North Cove volunteer firefighter Rick Wilcox for resolving their communications problems. His experience as a communications specialist in the Navy and countless hours contributed to the Tribe have resulted in a plan and equipment that ensures communications remain, even with all power and access to the outside world cut off. The plan uses a combination of ham radios, satellite phones, NOAA radios and public service radios on the Tribe's own dedicated frequency.

A second All Hazards Alert Broadcasting (AHAB) system has been acquired from the Washington State Emergency Management Department. With its new communications equipment, the Tribe can not only monitor for large-scale warnings, it can also activate the two AHAB units for localized emergencies.

ALL-HAZARDS MITIGATION PLANNING

As devastating as an earthquake or tsunami can be, they are still not very high on anyone's "most likely" disaster list. However, rain, high tides and destructive wind storms are experienced every year, and the Tribe has drafted an Emergency Response Plan (ERP) and cached additional supplies to help in any type of natural or man-made disaster.

The ERP requires every Tribal building to have two designated assembly areas, as well as a building monitor responsible for complete evacuation, a utilities shut-off person, and back-ups for both positions. Emergency codes are color-coded based on type--disasters are Code Orange, fire is Code Red, etc.--so responsible parties can begin appropriate actions immediately upon being notified.

Response to medical emergencies ranging from burns to multiple motor vehicle crashes are laid out in the ERP. General evacuation procedures are spelled out for every Tribal building, along with instructions on what to do during an earthquake.

CERT TEAM TRAILERS

Two enclosed trailers have been purchased and outfitted for CERT team disaster response. One 12' trailer contains an all-wheel-drive vehicle and fuel to evacuate the sick, injured or handicapped, and to haul supplies. The second 14' trailer contains gel cell batteries for up to 10 hours of instant-on power, gas-fueled power inverters, tools and medical supplies. In addition, the front contains multiple types of radios for the teams to use on the ground, to reach the outside world, talk with Shoalwater police and the Pacific County dispatch center and monitor NOAA broadcasts.

According to Shipman, they could find no checklist to tell them what to put in the second trailer, so she turned again to Rick Wilcox. As a local volunteer firefighter since 1993, Wilcox has seen his share of fires, high water, windstorms and car wrecks. He said he tried to put everything in the trailer that he could possibly think would come in handy for communicating, land clearing, road clearing, shoring and taking care of both the rescuers and their victims. He chose DC power with gel-cell batteries and power inverters rather than 110-volt AC for its instant-on and longer duration. Everything runs off the batteries, and the inverters keep them charged.

CERT trailer contents include:

Communications

• Ham Radio
• Satellite phone
• Family service radios
• Public service radios
• NOAA radios
• Incident Command Status Boards
• Maps
• U.S. DOT Emergency Response Guide

Power

• Gel-cell batteries
• Two 3,000 watt power invertors
• Portable lights
• Rechargeable lanterns and flashlights
• Extension cords

Tools

• Battery-powered Sawsall with spare batteries and blades
• Chainsaws
• Hand tools
• Oil spill containment kit
• 3 fire extinguishers
• Two or three each of axes, sledge hammers, bold cutters, crow bars, pry bars, digging bars, shovels, come-along and rope

Shoring Material

• 2x2s
• 2x4s
• 4x4s
• 4x4 wedges

Team and Victim Assistance

• Red Cross comfort kits
• Trauma care medical supplies
• Collapsible canvas stretchers
• Tarps
• Rain gear
• Drinking water
• CERT Packs

OTHER AREAS OF INTEREST

As the Tribe continues to develop its capabilities, progress is being made in many areas, including:

• Eight Tribal members are certified in hazardous waste operations and emergency response, and more are in training
• The Tribe is fully NIMS-compliant
• Two public information officers have been trained
• A medical reserve corps team has been approved for development
• A pandemic flu plan has been completed
• A spill-mitigation plan is complete for all the generators and propane tanks now installed at most public buildings for back-up power
• All law enforcement officers are AED-certified and carry defibrillators in their cars
• An AED is now located in the Shoalwater Bay Casino, where all gaming personnel are CPR- and AED-trained.

BACK TO SEPTEMBER 29...

After four years of work, how did the September 29 exercise go? In a follow-up e-mail, one Washington state EMD observer wrote, "The exercise was conducted in an almost flawless manner. Lee has done a great job of working with all the folks down there."

The tsunami that triggered this exercise lost a lot of its punch traveling over more than 8,000 miles of ocean. Dividing the distance traveled by the elapsed time, this wave ran from Samoa to the Washington coast at just over 700 miles per hour. What if the tsunami had originated in Hawaii--half the distance away? Worse yet, what if the Cascadia Subduction Zone--lying just 150 miles off the Pacific Coast of North America--let go with another magnitude 9 earthquake like its last known rupture in 1700? At that velocity, Shoalwater residents would have only 20 minutes to reach high ground. They've planned and proved they can do it.

ALWAYS MORE TO DO

As Shipman says, emergency preparedness is an ever-changing field. There are always more people to be trained, plans to be written, tested, revised and re-tested, new hazards to be aware of, and constantly evolving standards to meet. To meet this challenge, she relies on her teammates, area residents, state and federal authorities, and hours upon hours devoted to writing grant applications.

Meanwhile, the waves hit the shoreline, the wind rustles the trees, a bald eagle soars overhead and the computer on her desk beeps every few minutes around the clock as another earthquake is recorded somewhere in the Pacific Rim region.

For more information, contact Lee Shipman, Emergency Manager, leshipman@shoalwaterbay-nsn.gov; 360/267-8120, Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe, P.O. Box 130, Tokeland, WA 98590.

SIDEBAR: MAP YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD PROGRAM

"Map Your Neighborhood" (MYN) is a program designed by the Washington State Department of Emergency Management to help neighborhoods prepare for disasters. Local emergency management offices in many areas of Washington and around the country are using this program.

MYN is designed to:

• Teach the "9 Steps to Take Immediately Following a Disaster" to secure your home and protect your neighborhood. It is hard to think clearly following disaster, and these steps will help you to quickly and safely take actions that can minimize damage and protect lives.
• Identify the Skills and Equipment each neighbor has that would be useful in an effective disaster response. Knowing which neighbors have supplies and skills helps your disaster response be timely, and allows everyone to contribute to the response in a meaningful way.
• Create a Neighborhood Map identifying the locations of natural gas and propane tanks for quick response if needed.
• Create a Contact List that helps identify those with specific needs such as elderly, disabled, or children who may be home alone during certain hours of the day.

Neighbors then work together as a team to evaluate their own neighborhood during the first hour following a disaster and take the necessary actions. For more information and to download resource materials in up to seven different languages, see https://www.emd.wa.gov/myn/index.shtml.

Ed Mund began his fire and EMS career in 1989. He currently serves with Riverside Fire Authority, a fire-based ALS agency in Centralia, WA. His writing and photos have been published in several industry publications. He may be contacted at ems@emedstrat.com.