I. PURPOSE This annex outlines procedures for establishing and operating an Emergency Operations Satellite Support Office, referred to below as EOSSO. The procedures apply to any manmade or natural emergency situation in and around Jefferson Parish. II. SITUATION General. Jefferson Parish could experience disaster conditions that require the establishment and operation of an EOSSO in order to facilitate Continuity of Operations (COOP) and/or Continuity of Government (COG) if conditions exist such that essential administrative functions cannot be performed within the parish. EOSSO s purpose is to support and enhance Jefferson Parish s ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover from any event that triggers activation (full or partial) of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The goal is to position the parish to be able to continue to provide essential administrative services during and after significant emergencies. EOSSO staff members perform those functions that the Parish President and/or the Director of Emergency Management (1) deem appropriate adjuncts to EOC operations or (2) elect to implement if EOC operations are compromised. Primary functions include administering the Evacuation Re-Entry Plan, the Business Emergency Communication Network, and meeting the needs of Jefferson Parish businesses. The gravity of the emergency will determine the specifics of EOSSO operations. EOSSO will be deactivated as soon as essential services can be performed within Jefferson Parish. A. Such disaster conditions may be caused by natural phenomena such as hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, fires, storms, or any combination thereof, and may occur with or without warning. B. Hazardous material incidents at either a fixed site or in transit, or acts of terrorism or other events-without-warning, or any incident that causes activation of the Jefferson Parish Emergency Operations Center, may also precipitate the use of EOSSO. C. Jefferson Parish may establish and operate EOSSO: 1. During times of man-made disasters for as long as necessary. 2. During times of natural disasters such as floods, winter storms and tornadoes for only as long as needed. 3. At one or more facilities outside the specific emergency s impact zone OR at only those facilities that have been fortified and constructed to withstand winds generated by a major hurricane. D. Prior to June 1 of each year, Jefferson Parish will identify appropriate facilities from which to operate EOSSO and to house EOSSO staff. In order to (a) be as proximate to Jefferson Parish without experiencing comparable conditions during and postevent; (b) facilitate coordination with the Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and 05/20/07 1
Emergency Preparedness (LOHSEP); (c) access resources staged at LOHSEP; (d) access resources staged at East Baton Rouge Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (EBROHSEP), and (e) because EBROHSEP has an approximate protection factor of 300, the preferred EOSSO location will be in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 1. In collaboration and cooperation with the Mayor of Baton Rouge, Jefferson Parish will identify possible locations for EOSSO. 2. The location of EOSSO will be at EBROHSEP, 3773 Harding Boulevard, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70807. 3. The Jefferson Parish Emergency Management Director will have executed a Mutual Aid Agreement between Jefferson Parish and East Baton Rouge Parish regarding the establishment of EOSSO in East Baton Rouge Parish and any related Memoranda of Understanding. 4. Should conditions cause Baton Rouge to be in the significant-threat zone, appropriate facilities that can (a) safely support uninterrupted EOSSO operation, (b) safely house and support EOSSO staff, and (c) safeguard EOSSO equipment and other assets will be identified in another jurisdiction. Such secondary locations will be determined as conditions in Baton Rouge require and will be emergency-specific. 5. Jefferson Parish will arrange for appropriate housing for EOSSO staff during EOSSO activation. 6. Jefferson Parish employees assigned to EOSSO will have available to them the same or comparable opportunities regarding family members and pets as employees who are assigned essential duties within Jefferson Parish. 7. EOSSO essential duty personnel will be redeployed for essential duty within Jefferson Parish upon EOSSO deactivation if EOC is still on emergency activation. III. OPERATIONS DURING A HURRICANE THREAT (Event-with-Warning) NOTE: Conditions may require compression of the following time-lines. STAGE 1: Pre-Activation The National Weather Service notifies Jefferson Parish that a tropical storm or hurricane has developed in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea or the Gulf of Mexico, projected landfall is in 120 hours or less, and Jefferson Parish has a ten percent or greater chance of being impacted by the storm, -OR- The Parish President, in consultation with the Director of Emergency Management, activates EOSSO, 05/20/07 2
THEN: Preparations to establish EOSSO begin. EOSSO coordinators are provided appropriate and necessary communication equipment and are included in all briefings. They notify EOSSO advance-team members to secure personal property and tend to family needs. EOSSO coordinators communicate and coordinate with the East Baton Rouge Mayor s Office regarding activation of EOSSO. EOSSO coordinators notify designated facility that housing for advance-team members will be needed when Stage 3 conditions exist. Workforce Connection provides the Director of Electronic Information Services with all Workforce Connection laptops and wireless cards. STAGE 2: Probable EOSSO Activation THEN: A tropical storm or hurricane enters the Gulf of Mexico with projected landfall within 96 hours and Jefferson Parish has a ten percent or greater chance of being significantly impacted, EOSSO non-advance team staff are notified of storm s status and directed to secure personal property and tend to family needs. EOSSO advance team members are provided with appropriate and necessary communication equipment. EOSSO coordinators prepare non-department specific necessary equipment and supplies for transport to EOSSO. EOSSO coordinators notify designated facility that housing for remaining EOSSO staff and council will be needed when Stage 4 conditions exist or when EOSSO is fully activated. Fleet management assigns a fleet vehicle with eight-passenger capacity and emergency lights, and, if available, high-water exhaust, to the EOSSO Coordinator. 05/20/07 3
Laptops and wireless cards are distributed to advance team members as needs dictate. STAGE 3: Partial EOSSO Activation THEN: A Category 3 or greater hurricane is approximately 72 hours away, EOSSO advance team travels to the designated EOSSO location to prepare the facility for operations. Remaining EOSSO staff are provided appropriate communication equipment and finalize preparations to transport all other equipment, documents, and assets requisite to EOSSO functions. EOSSO coordinators continue to participate in staff briefings via conference calls or other means. Henceforth, PIO faxes all releases and relevant information to a pre-determined fax number at EOSSO. STAGE 4: Full EOSSO Activation THEN: Prior to contra-flow implementation, OR- When a Category 3 or greater hurricane is approximately 50 hours away from landfall and Jefferson Parish has a fifteen percent chance or greater of being impacted by the storm, whichever occurs first, The Parish President, in consultation with the Emergency Management Director, orders full activation of EOSSO and notifies EOSSO coordinators. BECN (Business Emergency Communication Network) is activated. EOSSO essential personnel immediately rendezvous with the escorted Juvenile Services caravan and proceed to the designated EOSSO location. 05/20/07 4
The Emergency Management Director will notify all essential-duty employees, through their respective department, when the Parish begins to experience sustained winds of 50 miles per hour. During full evacuation, EOSSO staff perform the following functions, as well as any other functions as assigned by the Parish President or the Emergency Management Director: o Administration of BECN and the addressing of business-related needs; o Communication with displaced employees; o Coordination with GOHSEP; o Designated financial functions; o Designated Electronic Information functions; o Designated Environmental functions; o Execution of emergency contracts as needed; o Administration of JumpStart Jefferson; EOSSO will function as the primary Jefferson Parish EOC in the event the main location within the parish becomes disabled. STAGE 5: Maintenance of EOSSO Operations THEN: The Parish President, in consultation with the Emergency Management Director and EOSSO coordinators, determines that conditions no longer warrant EOSSO operation and that essential administrative functions can be performed within Jefferson Parish, EOSSO is deactivated and ceases to perform designated functions. EOSSO essential duty personnel immediately return to Jefferson Parish. Upon return to the parish, EOSSO essential duty personnel are assigned duties by the Parish President and/or the Emergency Management Director and/or the C.A.A. for the remainder of emergency activation. BECN continues to operate until EOC is deactivated. 05/20/07 5
Should conditions warrant, the Parish President may order a phased deactivation and the EOSSO advance team (some or all) may remain at the EOSSO facility in order to provide those scaled-back functions deemed still necessary. IV. ORGANIZATION AND ASSIGNMENT OF RESPONSIBILITIES A. EOSSO operations shall be a special administrative assignment for designated essentialduty personnel. B. Specific functions performed by EOSSO staff may vary from one activation to the next and will also fluctuate as conditions in Jefferson Parish and at EOC fluctuate. C. Pre-disaster duties include: Each of these items must be completed annually by no later than March 1 st. 1. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that arrangements have been made to secure an appropriate facility for EOSSO operations. 2. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that necessary and appropriate housing for EOSSO staff during activation has been arranged. 3. The Emergency Management Director and his staff shall work with EOSSO coordinators to ensure that appropriate and adequate essential-duty personnel have been assigned to EOSSO. 4. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that all EOSSO essentialduty personnel are provided with credentials that permit first-responder travel into, through, and out of Jefferson Parish and through adjacent jurisdictions. 5. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that EOSSO Coordinators and other appropriate staff are provided with credentials required for LOHSEP access. 6. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that appropriate communication equipment and other critical equipment is provided to EOSSO staff. 7. The Emergency Management Director shall confirm that all essential-duty employees assigned to EOSSO have executed an essential duty employee policy form. 8. The Emergency Management Director shall review the contracts for rental, lease or use of all equipment, facilities, and services necessary for EOSSO functions. 05/20/07 6
9. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that all necessary documents, including a Mutual Aid Agreement and any related Memoranda of Understanding, are executed. 10. The Emergency Management Director shall update all plans and forms for the sheltering of the families of the essential-duty employees in accordance with D- 6 above. 10. The Emergency Management Director shall have each department confirm the fitness of each essential-duty employee to serve as an essential-duty employee during an emergency activation. 11. The Emergency Management Director shall arrange for EOSSO essential-duty personnel to be provided with pharmaceutical products during emergency activations. 12. The Emergency Management Director shall work with EOSSO coordinators to ensure that all necessary advance preparations are executed in a timely manner. 13. The Emergency Management Director shall ensure that all relevant information is forwarded timely to EOSSO during activation and that EOSSO coordinators are included in staff briefings via conference call or other means. 15. The Workforce Connection Director shall ensure that all Workforce Connection laptops and wireless cards are provided to the Electronic Information Director as per EOSSO EOP. 16. The Electronic Information Director shall ensure that all Workforce Connection laptops and wireless cards are programmed for EOSSO functions and are available at EOSSO upon full activation. D. The attached organizational chart explicates EOSSO lines of authority. V. DIRECTION AND CONTROL All EOSSO activities will be coordinated through the EOSSO Coordinators. Volunteers and non-essential-duty employees must have clearance from the EOSSO Coordinator-on- Duty prior to participating in EOSSO operations. VI. CONTINUITY OF GOVERNMENT (COG) Lines of succession to EOSSO essential-duty personnel are effectuated according to the standard operating procedures established by each department. 05/20/07 7
VII. RECORDS AND REPORTS The EOSSO coordinators are responsible for the accuracy of EOSSO essential-duty personnel s time reports and any other required documents, as well as for ensuring accurate sign-in/sign-out recordation of everyone entering/leaving EOSSO. EOSSO essential-duty personnel are responsible for all documents related to their EOSSO functions. VIII. COMMUNICATIONS EOSSO shall contain multiple means of communication including land-based phone lines, two-way trunked radios, conventional radios, wireless phones and internet-based pin and text messaging. The primary radio channel for emergency communications on the Parish s radio system shall be the Emergency operations dispatch channel. Citizens Affairs phone numbers will roll over to phones at EOSSO. IX. SECURITY Prior to full EOSSO activation, the Emergency Management Director will ensure that appropriate and adequate security is provided at the EOSSO facility in order to protect essential-duty personnel and the functioning of EOSSO. X. MEDICAL Prior to full EOSSO activation, the Emergency Management Director will ensure that arrangements are made for the provision of medical care to EOSSO staff for illnesses and injuries. XI. PLAN DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE The Emergency Management Department assumes primary responsibility for this annex and its EOP's. All other agencies assume responsibility for their respective functions. 05/20/07 8
Emergency Operations Satellite Support Office Organizational Chart Parish President Council C. C. A. A. A. A. Staff Emergency Management Director EOSSO Coordinators BECN BECN Phone Ops Ops Office Support Employee Relations Volunteers Environmental/General Finance/General Legal/General EIS/General 6/02/2006 05/20/07 9