Developing the Emergency Operation Plan.

        Emergency operation plan sets out the scope of activities required for community preparedness and response and has a declaration of what the community can realistically manage to do for themselves. EOP's are short term, and flexible to deal with likely changes that comes from the potential or real situations of emergency. Please not you are unlikely to have the mitigation strategy, administrative plan or the standard operating procedures contained in it. So how do we come up with an EOP? Well for one we need the following contained in it. A description of the plan, abstract, of contents, table of contents, Implementation, purpose of its section and the plans distribution. The document is to be assented by the head of the authority setting out the plan and thus giving it the validity, and authority it needs. The foundation of the plan is to be the prevailing laws and by-laws of the land.

Structure of the EOP

The EOP is specific in its layout as follows:

a)      Statement of Purpose – This is what the Plan seeks to achieve for citizens.

b)      Situation and assumptions – Statements of the emergency events, actual and potential, and describe the warning methods and any situations that may be peculiar/unusual to the community.

c)      Organization and assignment of responsibilities – Dealing specifically with how the jurisdiction will assign the emergency functions to carry out the Plan by roles of local officials in the emergency management structure.

d)      Concept of operations – This section describes the roles and relationships of government agencies, the private sector and how they interact with each other.

e)      Administration and logistics – The management of resources, general support requirements, and availability of services and support for all phases of emergency management and the policies set up to make these activities occur.

f)       Plan development and maintenance – This involve activities to keep the plan current and reflect changes that result from actual experiences in emergency management, changing emergency situations and assumptions, and modifications in the community’s profile.

g)      Authorities and references – These authorities and references apply to those statutes, executive orders, regulations, and formal agreements that pertain to any type of emergency.

h)      Definition of terms – This provides for a common understanding of the terms that will use in communication, directing and control in disasters.

(Courtesy of the VUSSC)