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“You can’t prevent every event, but you have to be prepared for every event,” says Christy Cooper, Water Sector Director of Research and Analysis for Kansas City, Mo.-based Black & Veatch. Once a vulnerability assessment has been performed, the key to preparedness is developing an emergency operations plan (EOP). It can save property and lives. The New York City Department of Environmental Protection had an EOP in place six years before Sept. 11. As a result, the department was prepared to coordinate water division personnel amid the chaos at Ground Zero.
According to Cooper, a water agency’s EOP would likely have the following elements:
- Purpose
- Situation and Assumptions
- Concepts of Operations
- Assignment of Responsibilities
- Administration and Logistics
- Plan Development and Maintenance
- Authorities and References
- A key step in developing an EOP is bringing federal, state and local personnel together to meet with the utility, Cooper says. The agencies can brainstorm about the possible emergency events and responses, including both terror attacks and natural disasters. “In the event of a major emergency, the utility can find itself out of control if it is not aligned with the appropriate federal, state and local authorities,” Cooper says. “If they’re not plugged in, they may not have sufficient influence in case of emergency.”
