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Disaster
Assistance
Disaster Preparedness Manual for the Aging Network
IV. The State Unit on Aging
A. Operations
It is the duty of the State Unit on Aging to remain calm, provide
assistance, coordinate services, and play a leadership role
in the event disaster strikes anywhere within the state. Some
may wonder how this is to be accomplished under the great pressure
of widespread disruption when it seldom takes place without
that burden, but training and preparation will go far toward
making a State Unit function in a positive and assistive manner.
The activities of State Units in the face of a disaster or potential
disaster take place in four categories - preparedness, immediate
response, recovery, and evaluation. The State Unit must coordinate
the activities of the local AAAs in the event of a disaster.
Whether a few communities in one AAA are effected, or an entire
state, it is to the State Unit that Area Agencies and other service
providers will turn to find the leadership needed.
PREPAREDNESS FOR THE STATE UNIT
When a disaster strikes, confusion generally follows. Ordinary
services and devices usually taken for granted are no longer
available. Key personnel will be distracted or disabled.
Links connecting State Units on Aging and local Agencies, or
other
elements of state government, may be destroyed or overloaded.
The State Units on Aging must be prepared.
THE WRITTEN DISASTER
RESPONSE PLAN - In order to be prepared, a State Unit on Aging
must prepare a written disaster response
plan. Such a plan must be practical and it must be simple;
at the same time it must be so crafted that the plan is comprehensive,
covering the entire range of disasters to which all or any
portion of the state might fall prey.
By following the outlines in this manual, filling in the blanks
on the checklist, and spending time when the pressure is NOT
on, State Units on Aging can take major steps in reaching a state
of preparedness. There is no time to plan when disaster strikes,
and absence of a plan can escalate a relatively modest disruption
to the level of a major disaster. However, writing a disaster
response plan requires significant amounts of time in preparation
and conversation.
Who is responsible? Probably the first step in planning is for
the State Unit on Aging to designate a Disaster Aging Officer.
It is important that this responsibility be assigned to a senior
member of the staff, one with substantial authority. This individual
will be the person to whom decisions will be referred, and who
will establish and maintain liaison with other elements of state
government, Federal Disaster Aging Officers, and local elements
of the aging network. In preparation for duties during a disaster
situation, it will be the task of the Disaster Aging Officer
to write the state aging disaster response plan.
The Disaster Aging Officer has as his or her first task the
duty of finding the State's overall emergency planning office,
meeting with representatives of that office, and learning the
general plan of response to any disaster by the mechanism of
state government. It is useful to learn and understand the criteria
by which state proclamations of emergency or disaster are made
and the effects such declarations have under the laws and regulations
of the state. It is also helpful if the Disaster Aging Officer
can take advantage of any opportunity to work with other members
of the state disaster team, dealing with exercises or drills
as well as with the administrative problems which face such a
body. As people work together they learn the typical responses
of others, and this is an important asset in situations as demanding
as the presence of an actual emergency.
Like every other communicator, the Disaster Aging Officer will
be required to communicate in many directions: with the executive
level of state government in dealing with the State's Emergency
Preparedness Plan and with other units of State Government; with
Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel and persons from
the Administration on Aging; with local Area Agencies and with
service providers; with representatives of local and regional
units of government; with key segments of communities; and, with
the general public. For these reasons, it is vital that this
person have excellent communications skills.
The Disaster Aging Officer MUST prepare a contact list and checklist
to be used in the event of any kind of disaster.
How is all this
to get done? The State Disaster Aging Officer must begin by
contacting the State Emergency Preparedness Office,
under whatever name it uses in that state.
o Is the State Unit on Aging properly included in the State
Emergency plan?
o Is there a clear understanding of the chain of command in
emergencies, from the Governor through to the field personnel,
Area Agency Directors, etc?
o Is there a listing of the agencies with which the State Unit
on Aging must interrelate during the course of responding to
a isaster? Is the relationship of the agencies understood and
the responsibility and authority of each included in the State
Emergency plan as well as the State Aging Disaster Response plan?
o Is there a listing of key personnel in other agencies to whom
questions, requests, etc., ought be directed during the period
of dealing with the disaster?
o Has the Disaster Aging Officer had opportunity to meet with
and relate to each key person?
o Has each significant contact person been listed on the Contact
List? In case of change, has the contact list been updated in
the computer and in the book?
The Disaster Aging Officer and the AAA's: A key part of the duties
of the Disaster Aging Officer from the State Units on Aging
is the duty to assure that each AAA has a written Disaster
Response Plan, and a person assigned responsibility for coordinating
disaster relief efforts. Ample assistance is afforded by this
handbook, but it is the job of the State Disaster Aging Officer
to make sure that each AAA has a plan, understands it, and
has dealt with all possible contingencies.
CONSIDERATIONS IN DEVELOPING A DISASTER PLAN
The Disaster Aging Officer from the State Unit on Aging may
be guided by the following considerations when it is necessary
to devise a disaster plan.
1. Consider the capabilities and limitations of the SUA.
2. Consider conjunctions with other agencies. It is vital that
a full list of such agencies be made.
3. Consider the plans and responsibilities of AoA, and how they
relate to the plans and responsibilities of the SUA.
4. Consider the degree of planning for disaster in the state,
on an overall basis.
5. Consider the roles of the various relief agencies in the
state, and state-level leadership for local elements of government
and their service and assistance agencies. In order to do so,
a comprehensive list of local agencies is needed to augment the
list of state relief agencies.
6. Consider the organizations primarily responsible for relief
authority and assistance in each community, inside and outside
of government.
Make a clear and simple chain of command for each
organization, so that lines of coordination and control are
clear.
7. Consider the appropriateness of dividing jurisdictions or
the entire state into workable segments. Where possible, these
ought follow natural or traditional boundaries, and respect AAA
boundaries where appropriate. But if the flood divides an AAA,
it may be necessary to provide higher-echelon coordination.
8. Consider the types of disaster most and least likely to occur
in the state; pay attention to the relative probability of occurrence,
the probable lead time involved, the potential magnitude, any
factors which make one or another area more or less likely to
be involved, and the kinds of effects which may be produced in
specific geographical areas (effects on people, systems, facilities,
resources and institutions.) Make sure that this is incorporated
in the disaster response plan of each area agency. Also make
sure that each service provider has made plans appropriate for
its tasks.
9. Consider plans for sharing and disseminating information
with nd to other organizations which will be collecting data
and doing needs assessment.
10. Consider the necessity for the State Unit on Aging to assume
a significant degree of responsibility in disasters which are
not national in nature but which are significant to a degree
that an Area Agency is unable to cope, or which transcend Area
Agency boundaries.
COORDINATION FUNCTIONS
Under the leadership of the Disaster Aging Officer, the SUA must
review the State Emergency Preparedness Plan and the Aging
Disaster Response Plan, determining the planning and preparation
tasks which remain to be done and which entity shall do them.
1. The SUA must assume a leadership role in disseminating information
concerning the Aging Disaster Response Plan, making sure other
units of state government, the AAA's, and the Administration
on Aging understand what the State Unit is planning.
2. Investigate available disaster relief and assistance programs
and identify gaps.
3. Secure inclusion in state disaster assistance planning. If
none exists, initiate.
4. Be sure that agencies involved in disaster assistance understand
what services and information the SUA can provide, and be sure
the SUA and AAAs understand what services and information other
agencies can provide.
5. Beginning from the inventory of community resources accumulated
by Information and Referral activities, assemble a list of resources
for the elderly for inclusion in the State Disaster systems,
and insure that each AAA has done the same.
6. Establish a working relationship, and where appropriate,
written agreements or memoranda of understanding, with other
organizations. This should include a personal meeting with each
organization's coordination person, and a listing of them in
the directory. This requires constant monitoring and updating.
7. Be sure everyone understands the data needs of the Aging
Network, and that the SUA understands the data needs of other
agencies. For instance, many agencies do not record the age of
the victim, merely the need, and although many Aging Network
programs record age, they may not record occupation even though
for example,"farmer" might generate additional sources
of relief dollars.
This coordination process is an outstanding opportunity to
make other agencies aware of the needs of the elderly and of
the
SUA and the Aging Network. SUA's on the state level and AAA's
on the local must initiate an educational process which makes
emergency organizations aware of the special needs of older
persons.
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE
Based on information acquired in the planning process and in
the coordination effort, devise a written Standard Operating
Procedure which outlines the response process when a disaster
is reported. This should include:
1. WHO is involved, primary and alternate respondents.
2. WHAT are the duties and responsibilities of each primary
respondent.
3. WHAT are the alerting and mobilization procedures when a
disaster is reported, during working hours and during non-working
hours.
4. HOW will communications be maintained if the phone system
is out? if the electrical system is out?
5. WHERE will the SUA operate if its office is located within
the disaster area?
6. HOW MUCH will personnel be allowed to claim on a reimbursed
employee expense basis?
7. WHO will be located where during the disaster? immediately
following a disaster?
8. WHO is responsible for what during a non-presidential emergency,
or before a Presidential Emergency is declared?
The actual arrival of a disaster is ALWAYS too soon, too much,
too confusing and stressful. Preparation helps; indeed it is
the only help available when disaster strikes. Whether the arrival
is sudden and unheralded like an earthquake or anticipated, as
some floods or blizzards, or whether the disaster arrives abruptly
like the strike of a tornado or has grown to become a disaster,
as a heat wave does, when the disaster is finally upon the community,
much of the potential for diminishing the damage depends on the
preparation of professionals. In the aging network, that means
YOU.
LOCATION AND IDENTIFICATION
The actual listing of older persons will probably always remain
the task of the Area Agency. The SUA must be able to indicate
how many might be expected in a given area, based on AAA figures
or other sources. Immediately after any disaster the SUA and
AAAs involved will be called upon to estimate the numbers of
elderly effected by the disaster.
SUA Tasks for location and identification: The State Unit ought
have a set of maps which generally displays the density of older
persons, key sites where older persons may be found, and which
also displays the general location of sources of assistance for
older individuals. These maps must be compiled from more detailed
maps which are developed by each AAA.
Area Agencies ought to identify older persons, using procedures
set forth in the Area agency portion of this handbook, and SUA
activities in this area ought include review of AAA efforts,
identification of potential sources of information, and working
on the state level to assure a smooth and uninterrupted flow
of information.
COMMUNICATIONS
In any situation of great stress, organizations and individuals
behave as though they were starving for information. One of the
more significant results of every disaster is the damage to the
communication system. In every disaster, communication has been
a major problem. Communication occurs in two directions -
HORIZONTALLY- with other state-level organizations, including SEMA.
VERTICALLY - within the aging network.
In both instances, the SUA occupies a "crossroads" situation
- it is charged with assuring the flow of information and directives
between the AAA and the AoA as well as initiating or receiving
messages from both directions; it is also charged with assuring
the smooth flow of information from agency to agency across the
structure of state government.
In addition, the SUA occupies a "switching" function,
gathering information from other horizontal elements of state
government and sending it upward or downward, and disseminating
vertical information laterally across state-level agencies.
Because the SUA has these transmitting functions, as well as
duties in gathering and analysis of information, it is vital
that the disaster plan provide for constant and effective communication.
This in turn requires decisions which are technologically and
systematically appropriate; modem and fax might be appropriate
links between the SUA and AoA but not for transmittal of flash
flood information from an AAA far up a valley, where electric
and telephone communication could be highly threatened.
GRAPEVINES
Remember the "grapevine" technique of network communications.
In order to apply this approach, preparation is required.
The "grapevine" plugs local units on aging into individuals
who know the community and its elderly residents - postpersons,
delivery people, meter readers, church groups, and other who
reach into the daily lives of large numbers of people.
For the State Unit, particularly during the stressful times
of a disaster, the parallel program is to tap into the elements
of the state-wide system with similar widespread contacts - delivery
shuttle drivers, law enforcement agencies, public utilities,
Highway Department or Road and Bridge personnel. The idea here
is to use these alternative sources of information to aid in
understanding the picture in local areas and understanding how
this effects the elderly clientele of SUA's.
Possible "grapevine" sources on the state level include
such emergency service centers as law enforcement coordination
offices, National Guard command points, etc. These are facilities
which might identify problem areas on the borders between two
AAAs, or point out that the northern part of an Agency's area
is isolated from the remainder of the service area by rising
rivers, and assistance will be required from an adjacent agency
because of the inaccessibility of the location.
Just as FEMA conducts a daily meeting in the disaster area,
a daily meeting or conference should be conducted on a state
level. State Units on Aging must be sure to attend this conference.
In addition, daily reporting requirements must be devised for
information from the AAAs, and for reporting to the AAAs by the
SUA. Further, a routine for dissemination of information laterally
must be organized. The Disaster Diary: Senior
coordinating officials are not going to be able to remember every
critical fact, every critical
event, every material or program shortcoming. A diary is a
necessity. Keep a small one, keep it private, and keep it for
yourself. The diary must be honest, blunt, uncompromising.
Later, this diary can serve as the basis of a written and detailed
report which can be useful in evaluation of the SUA's efforts,
listing of points of improvement, and so forth. But after the
disaster is a good time to revise the manual to report actual
experiences. In the stress of the disaster response, simple
and uncomplicated language is best. In it, record triumphs
as well as shortcomings. Keep track of where you have been,
what you have seen, to whom you have spoken. The diary will
prove to be invaluable.
ALL OF THESE MUST BE PLANNED IN ADVANCE.
State Units On Aging must:
1. Devise and monitor procedures to assure the orderly flow
of information under conditions of difficulty;
2. Devise a system of regular debriefings from AAAs, its own
field staff, and any other sources regularly appearing in the
SUA operating headquarters;
3. Demand daily information from each AAA involved, establishing
disaster impact on the elderly and indicating, where appropriate,
actions to be initiated, and monitor compliance.
4. Keep others informed, particularly of decisions pending and
as made, alerting AAAs and others of resources as they become
available, and conducting and reporting on institutional advocacy
efforts at the state level.
5. Conduct regular conferences, personally or by phone, with
AAAs and key on-site elements of the Aging Network.
6. Plan patterns of communication procedures for AAAs and other
elements of the Aging network, disseminate those procedures before
a disaster, and require training and practice in the use of those
procedures.
A brief note here - personal communication and cooperation DURING
a disaster is much more likely to occur when there has been personal
communication and the establishment of some personal rapport
BEFORE a disaster. State Disaster Aging Officers ought get out
of the office and meet the folks with whom they will be working
when the time comes.
DIMINISHMENT OF NEEDS AND DE-ESCALATION
As the crisis is passed and disturbance in routine operations
wanes, the SUA must lead the return to normalcy of the elements
of the Aging Network.
1. Restore attention to program basics: The continuing conduct
of service programs for the large number of persons who were
not directly effected by the disaster will serve as a steadying
influence on the AAA's and Service Providers; as the effects
of the disaster are dealt with, geographic or program areas
ought be returned to routine services.
NOTE - There is a tendency among many people to seek to continue
the crisis mentality. Dealing with the urgent demands and coping
with unexpected problems leads to a sort of euphoria among
some who are confronting the immediate needs of large numbers
of folks, and some of those who experience this euphoria are
reluctant to see it as part of the past. This needs to be guarded
against.
2. Be sure to deal with all of the remnants of the crisis. It
is sometimes impossible to read everything from the field as
it comes in. It is vital that everything be read and reviewed
to permit all lessons to be drawn, gaps in service to be identified,
shortcomings noted, etc.
3. Deal with the problems which flow from the crisis. It is sometimes
necessary to hire temporary help for brief periods. These people
must not leave without being debriefed, and without an evaluation
of their work being carried out.
Final Efforts - Debriefing
The response to a disaster is not concluded when the water
recedes, nor when the last aged victim is safely provided for,
nor when
the equipment is put away, nor when the use of temporary
help is ended. Disaster Aging Officers must then sit down and
go
over the experiences gained during the periods of stress.
This can be organized in several ways; one such way is to focus
on material and equipment, then on individual members of
the
team, and then on programs.
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