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This site contains information and links to guidance on the development, review and maintenance of local jurisdiction emergency operations plans (EOP). The Ohio Emergency Management Agency (Ohio EMA) recently developed and continues to deliver a one-day course entitled, Developing and Maintaining Local Emergency Operations Plans. This course is presented locally and is sponsored by one-or-more county emergency management agencies. Course participants are required to successfully complete FEMA’s Emergency Planning Independent Study Course.
Ohio EMA’s one-day emergency planning course is designed for emergency management personnel who are involved in developing an effective emergency planning system and presents an “Ohioized” view of emergency planning information that we feel is important for county-level and municipal-level emergency management staff who are engaged in emergency planning and the production of emergency operations plans to have.
The course offers training in the fundamentals of the emergency planning process, including the rationale behind planning. It is designed to develop participants’ capability for effective participation in the all-hazard emergency operations planning process to save lives and protect property threatened by disasters.
In May 2008, Ohio EMA updated its primary local EOP development and review guidance document, Plan Development and Review Guidance for Local Emergency Operations Plans. This guidance document was initially developed in 1999 by a joint committee of State and local EMA officials. The May 2008 improvements included hyperlinks to additional guidance and links to FEMA’s Target Capabilities List.
Chapter One of the guidance document presents an overview of the planning process and provides local emergency operations planners with guidance on how to develop and format their EOP. It also includes a hyperlinked reference section to obtain additional planning information.
Chapter Two of the guidance document contains a comprehensive checklist of essential planning elements, some unique to Ohio programs. The Checklist is a working document that the local planning team should use to develop a new plan or to evaluate an existing plan. It defines the “Suggested” and “Recommended” planning elements that should be addressed by each emergency response program.
The State of Ohio’s Plan Development Guidance supplements the guidance found in FEMA’s State and Local Guide (SLG) 101: Guide for All-Hazard Emergency Operations Planning – 1996 and Comprehensive Planning Guide (CPG) 101: Producing Emergency Plans – A Guide for All-Hazards Emergency Operations Planning for State, Territorial, Local and Tribal Governments – 2009.
Local EMAs and planning entities should use both the federal and state guidance in the development and maintenance of their plans. One such document is FEMA’s Target Capabilities List User Guide to accompany the Target Capabilities List itself.
Guidance on how to ensure that your local emergency operations plan is NIMS-compliant can be found at http://ema.ohio.gov/NimsGuidance.aspx.
Guidance and working documents to ensure that your community is prepared to respond to the receipt, storager and distribution of Strategic National Stockpile materiel can be found at http://www.ema.ohio.gov/SNSGuidance.aspx.
Questions on plan development and review are welcome and should be forwarded to Brad Schwartz, State Planner, Ohio Emergency Management Agency, at: baschwartz@dps.state.oh.us.
