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ANNEX 2: INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS

Because communications are a critical function to assist emergency response and ensure the delivery of essential services, the Municipality maintains an internal communications system to ensure expedient transmission of information, provide a common operating picture, and facilitate accessibility to emergency resources.

OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS

A.      Responders will use plain English communications for all interagency public safety operations affecting the Municipality.

B.      A common operating picture will be established across agencies through communication of situation reports, damage assessments, and other information or intelligence.

C.      Regular communication systems will be used as much as possible during an emergency.

D.     When the scope of an emergency exceeds regular communications capacity, emergency response communications will be given priority use of communication resources.

E.      The Municipality will maintain its tactical interoperable radio communications capability by using common equipment or a gateway between dissimilar systems that will be rapidly deployable at any time and operational within one hour of an incident’s occurrence.

F.      Restoration of communications systems will be a priority following a disaster.

G.     The Municipality maintains satellite phones for use by key emergency officials during an emergency.

H.    The Municipality will use local amateur radio operators to augment emergency communications capabilities.

I.        A Hospital Emergency Alert Response Network (HEARNet) will be established between emergency medical responders and area hospitals. Efforts to include hospitals outside the local area will be made as necessary and as technological capabilities allow.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The responsibilities listed herein are not intended to be departmental checklists. Each agency will develop internal policies and procedures to perform its assigned duties. At the discretion of the incident commander not all functions may be performed and nor all agencies used.

Primary Agencies

Anchorage Office of Emergency Management / Emergency Operations Center

1.      Coordinates overall strategic disaster response during a major emergency or disaster.

2.      Secures additional resources through state and federal agencies as needed.

3.      Coordinates with and supports requests from field agencies during a major emergency or disaster.

4.      Assumes strategic long-term planning for emergency communications and interoperability standards.

5.      Maintains inventories of communications resources including equipment, frequencies, and locations of repeaters and communications towers.

6.      Ensures a system of emergency power generation at the EOC.

Information Technology Department

1.      Ensures that all municipal agencies consider emergency communications requirements when upgrading telephone and computer systems.

2.      Provides damage assessment to the EOC regarding status of municipal telephone and computer systems.

3.      Provides technical assistance to EOC staff and provides representatives to the EOC to support telephone and computer systems during an emergency.

4.      Coordinates with local communications utilities and other entities as directed by the EOC to restore municipal telephone and computer systems after a disaster.

Traffic Department, Communications Division

1.      Acts as the lead agency in coordination with the Anchorage Office of Emergency Management to ensure the availability of emergency communications and compliance with interoperability standards.

2.      Assists Amateur Radio Emergency Services in its support of the emergency communications system in the EOC as able.

3.      Maintains and services emergency communications systems and provides recommendations to the EOC for upgrades as needed.

4.      Ensures that all municipal agencies consider emergency communications requirements when upgrading communications systems.

5.      Provides damage assessment to the EOC regarding status of communications systems.

6.      Provides technical assistance to EOC staff and provides representatives to the EOC to support communications systems during an emergency.

7.      Coordinates with local communications utilities and other entities as directed by the EOC to restore communications systems after a disaster.

8.      Assists area hospitals in HEARNet operations.

Support Agencies

Amateur Radio Emergency Services

1.      Provides equipment and resources to enhance emergency communications capabilities between the EOC, congregate care facilities, incident sites, command posts, hospitals, and other critical locations.

2.      Supports the public information branch with communications operations as needed.

Fire Department

1.      Assists with 911 emergency services for the Municipality.

Maintenance and Operations Department, Facility Maintenance Section

1.      Ensures necessary backup power generation for all support facilities in advance of an emergency.

Municipal Light and Power

1.      Coordinates with the Communications Unit at the EOC to restore any lost power supply to municipal communications systems.

Police Department

1.      Provides 911 emergency services for the Municipality.

MUTUAL AID, STATE, OR FEDERAL ASSISTANCE

All state and federal assistance is coordinated through the State Emergency Coordination Center.

The National Communications System may be activated to establish priority authorization of telecommunications services.

REFERENCES

Anchorage Emergency Operations Plan, Annex 9: Public Information and Warning

National Response Plan, ESF #2: Communications

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