Continuity Plan for College Station Community (Essay Sample)

Continuity Plan for College Station Community Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Course Name & No. Instructor’s Name Date Continuity Plan for College Station Community College Station is a relatively small city within the Brazos Valley region of Texas. Texas A&M University has been the flagship institution which has resulted in the area often being referred to as “Aggieland”. Over the years, the population of the city has been increasing and its current population is estimated to be approximately 120,000 (US Census, n.d.). The city is known for its rich history, college town atmosphere, and friendly community with several attractions such as the Bonfire Memorial, the Brazos Valley Farmers Market, Kyle Field, and the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum. Given that the vibrant local community is focused on education, economic development, and culture, it is crucial for the city to develop a continuity plan in case of a large scale terror event. Continuity in times of crisis is essential since it ensures that uninterrupted critical services, essential support and functions are maintained. It also ensures that there is adequate organizational viability, before, during, and after an event that disrupts normal operations. Therefore, a continuity plan is essential for any local community including College Station in case of a terrorist attack. Such an event is capable of disrupting the normal functioning of any community resulting in the loss of property and life. Given the potential consequences of a terrorist attack to the College Station community, a continuity plan that includes a set of procedures and policies will significantly aid in reducing the impact to the community. Apart from protecting life and property, it will also ensure that the community’s critical services and infrastructure are still operational. Incident Command System The Incident Command System (ICS) is a critical component of the emergency management system in case of a terror attack in College Station community. An ICS is often used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other agencies across the United States in emergency response management. The use of ICS in College Station will facilitate the community’s ability to effectively communicate and coordinate various response actions with other personnel. Given its importance, it will be a key pillar in the continuity plan. The ICS also provides a chain of command and structure that must be observed in the case of any response effort. It ensures that all the relevant stakeholders are involved in the response since they will clearly know their roles and responsibilities and whom they have to report to. Given that there is a terror attack, an ICS will significantly improve coordination between several agencies at the state and federal level which ultimately all people involved are working towards similar objectives and more importantly, it allows for the efficient allocation of resources. Risk Assessment Once a terror attack has taken place in the College Station community, it is critical to identify the potential risks and hazards that the local community will be facing. It is also important for an assessment to be carried out after a continuity plan has been activated. Assessing a terrorist attack is crucial in preventing any potential follow-up terror events by the persons responsible which critical in protecting responders (U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2018; Joint Terrorism Assessment Team (JCAT), 2018). The assessment will include increased security measures within the College Station community, enhanced intelligence gathering in the local area and online chatter, and increased community engagement efforts that will aid with the identification of other potential terror threats. Even in situations where there was increased preparedness, a terrorist attack may still take place. Therefore, by assessing the potential terror risks and vulnerabilities, emergency management officials are capable of developing plans and procedures that ensure efficient and effective response to the terror emergency which would aid in reducing its impact. Human Resources The Emergency Management Team (EMT) or Incident Response Team (IRT) will play a significant role in evaluating information from different sources during and after the terror event. The EMT or IRT will be led by a continuity coordinator who is the mayor’s appointee. The holder of the position will advise the mayor on any appropriate courses of action. The EMT is also instrumental in reviewing and approving the continuity plan or making the necessary changes when and if the need arises. Once the security agencies have confirmed that it was indeed a terror attack, the IRT will automatically be activated to respond to the emergency. The community incident commander will head the IRT and he or she will be responsible for guiding the incident to its resolution as soon as possible (Atlassian, n.d.). More importantly, the holder will be a continuity coordinator or manager. The holder of this position is the primary point of contact to ensure that there is smooth communication and teamwork does not break down. The community incident commander will also allocate roles and responsibilities to the various teams. The holder will be a critical link between the state government, federal government and local coordinators who will help with the emergency. Other positions within the IRT will include the essential records manager who will be responsible for the reviewing the status of essential records, databases, and files. The holder will also be responsible for ensuring proper protection and storage of all relevant records that will be essential to the continuity plans. The team will include continuity personnel who will be deployed immediately the continuity plan has been deactivated. The continuity personnel will also provide relevant information to the community incident commander who is also the critical decision-maker in the team. The team will also include department directors who will constantly communicate will continuity manager. They will also be responsible for managing the roster of continuity team members or the reallocation of the rosters when the need emerges. They will also closely work with the essential records manager to ensure that there are sufficient backup copies or updates of all essential records. Assignment of Responsibilities Position Responsibilities Continuity Manager or coordinator * Update the continuity plan periodically. * Act as a link between the local government and the federal government. * Plan continuity exercises for the personnel. * Delegate roles, responsibilities, and authority whenever necessary. * Implement the plan or make changes when required by a higher authority, in this case, the mayor. * Coordinate with other anti-terror agencies. Essential Records Manager * Protection and storage of essential records. * Periodically review the essential records, databases, and files. * Update essential records in conjunction with the continuity manager. * Report to the continuity coordinator or manager. Continuity Personnel * Provide or update information to the continuity coordinator or manager. * Preparing for duty assignments and support the College Station community when the continuity plan has been activated. * Be conversant with continuity planning and individual roles and responsibilities that they will be assigned. * Engage in continuity training and exercises as directed by the continuity manager or coordinator. Department Directors * Coordination and implementation of the plan. * Keep the continuity coordinator or manager updated on any changes. * Maintaining the team members’ register. Help in the preparation and updating the essential records in conjunction with the essential records manager. Recommend to the continuity coordinator or manager functions that can be terminated or deferred. Ensure accountability among the continuity team members or personnel. Communication The implementation of the continuity plan cannot effectively and efficiently take place without proper communication systems being put in place. Developing of a good communication plan that clearly outlines how the information will be disseminated from the mayor’s appointee who is the continuity coordinator to the team and vice versa ca...