Question

1. SELECT a critical incident that you are familiar with. It could be current or historical. Provide a link to the critical incident in this discussion post. 2. COMPOSE a brief paragraph outlining and analyzing when you would activate an Emergency Operations Center (EOC). 3. DETERMINE if your selected critical incident, from above, would call upon you to activate an EOC, and provide a thorough analysis to explain your decision.

Answer 1

31 Metra seven years ago achieved a basic philosophical change focused on restoring service as quickly as possible, and this has assisted. Metra immeasurably. Metra's preference is to get its police on scene as quickly as possible and for its force to request juris diction over the remaining investigation. The way to really fly If the train is mechanically operational, Metra will try to keep it in service. Sometimes passengers are transferred to other trains (often using the ADA lifts to connect the vesti bules of train cars on adjacent tracks) while the train involved in the incident is held. In the latter case, the train will proceed directly to the tie-up yard once released. It should be clearly understood that safety is always the top priority. Frustrating situations that have occurred over the years involve responders' refusing to allow service on an adjacent track owing to the presence of minor evidence and/or insisting on interviewing every train passenger on board before allowing a train METRA, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS Metra, formally known as the Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation, operates commuter rail in approximately 100 jurisdictions in the greater Chicago area. Service area population is 7.26 million. Metra operates 1,048 continue operation commuter rail vehicles in maximum service. Annual com- 2012 muter rail ridership was 74.2 million Obtaining the most effective, most reliable information is crucial in terms of communicating with and minimizing impacts to passengers. Metra communicates with its passen- gers by means of on-board announcements and e-mail ser- vice alerts. The agency was criticized during the harsh winter of 2013-14 for not communicating well with its customers regarding service delays, so passenger communication is a high priority at this time Process and Major Themes When an incident occurs, the engineer notifies the train dis- patcher. The Canadian Pacific (CP) railroad has dispatching sponsibilities on most Metra lines. The CP dispatcher c tacts Metra's Yardmaster, who is responsible for all communi cations within the agency and will then inform the Trainmasters Metra uses bus bridges/shuttles, but timing of the incident affects the ability to get a bus bridge/shuttle up and running. In peak hours, PACE (the suburban bus agency) often does not have spare buses available or cannot get them to the inci- dent location quickly due to traffic. Metra rely on bus bridges/shuttles for incidents that occur in non- and Metra police. CP also calls Metra police and police in the community where the incident takes place. Once on-site, Metra personnel will determine which jurisdiction is in charge. The protocol is that the first group to respond takes charge. This more likely to may be Metra, county, local, or state police. Metra police ask upon arrival for control of the investigation. This request is sometimes granted and sometimes not. Metra checks with the train crew and arranges relief if needed. peak periods. Changes/Lessons Learned Metra rail staff communicate to the agency in charge the If Metra could change one aspect of the process of critical incident management, it would work to make all first respond ers comfortable and confident that no one's life is in danger when train service is restored. The incident scene is hectic, need to get the train system up and running again, and will assure them that no people will be placed in harm's way and that trains can operate safely while the investigation continues The on-site Metra Transportation Department officials are in and it is difficult to communicate that service can be restored communication with the trains and will establish a reduced safely when first responders are focused on their duties. or "walking" speed for trains on an adjacent track with a rail supervisor on the scene to coordinate train movements, permission to resume service is granted. There is a broad spectrum of thought from community to community on when Metra contracts with a cleaning service to pick up every- thing at an incident site after first responders finish their work. The cleaning service personnel are paid by the hour and are not to allow service restoration a an incident site. Permission is more likely to be granted if local agency personnel are famil- always in a hurry to finish. Metra personnel typically handle this situation by firmly insisting that cleanup be completed expedi- tiously, but a different protocol may be worth considering. iar and have worked with Metra. In the past, Metra police were often least likely to restore service, claiming the need to follow specific incident inves- There are almost always informal discussions after each incident among agency managers who were on site regarding tigation protocols. Post-incident discussions approximately

An Emergency Operations Center (EOC) serves as the coordination hub for an incident response. This facility, although identified by many names (command center, command post, war room, etc.), provides a central intelligence arena for decision makers and response team personnel to gather critical information, coordinate response activities, and manage personnel as the emergency situation dictates. A safe location equipped with effective e technology allows for communication with staff and response teams.

The EOC, whether a simple conference room or an extravagant mission control facility, should be capable of serving as the central coordination point for:

• All emergency operations
• Information gathering and dissemination
• Coordination with local governments, outside contractors, mutual aid and volunteer organizations

The EOC should be organized to carry out five major functions: command, planning, operations, logistics, and finance, each of which may be divided into sub-functional units. This organization is modeled after Incident Command System (ICS), allowing all involved parties to establish a common organization and terminology. According to ICS, the main functions operating from the EOC are:

• Command - responsible for overall response management.
• Operations – responsible for coordinating all operations to support the Incident Action Plans.
• Planning  – responsible for collecting, evaluating, and disseminating information and for coordinating development of Incident Action Plans.
• Logistics – responsible for procuring facilities, services, personnel, equipment and materials.
• Finance / Administration – responsible for tracking incident costs, forecasts, and payment of responders, contractors, and claims.

Pre-designated personnel who understand their roles and responsibilities should staff the EOC. Identified representatives from local response agencies, contractors, volunteer agencies, and any other group with significant response roles may also be asked to support the emergency response from the EOC.

When a reportable incident has a probability for a significant negative impact, the EOC may be activated. Initially the EOC may:

• Act as the communications link between corporate headquarters and the affected facility.
• Ensure that specifically trained response individuals are available or are being mobilized in the event their expertise is necessary.
• Ensure that necessary equipment is available on site. This may require ordering and arranging delivery of equipment and materials from contractors.
• Update relevant information on vendors, contractors, consultants, and other key resources that the Incident Commander and the Corporate Support Team will be utilizing.
• Monitor TV, radio, and wire services to determine accuracy of public information
• Update executive management as the incident transpires and changes.
• Ensure that all regulatory, state and local notifications and procedures are performed. Act as a liaison with Federal, State, and local regulatory agencies and officials affected by the location and specific nature of the incident.
• Ensure employees and the impacted community is adequately informed of the incident and response actions.

Simply establishing a specific location, and stocking it with response equipment and technology is not enough to coordinate an effective response. The EOC staff must be thoroughly trained, drilled in the proper processes and procedures, and understand specified roles and responsibilities for coordinating full-scale emergency response effort.