Mendocino County Grand Jury • 2006-2007 • Agency Response
Response to: LAFCO

ALL Together Now… a Report on Emergency Response Coordination

Published: May 24, 2007 6 pages
Ver PDF original

Findings and Recommendations 22 findings

F1
Section 7.04.010 of Title 7 defines the purpose of the chapter as: “to provide for the preparation and carrying out of plans for the protection of persons and property within this County in the event of an emergency” and “coordinate the emergency functions of this County with all other public agencies, corporations, organizations, and affected private persons.”
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
the County provide sufficient funds and resources to further develop and implement the coordination mandate of the EOP among the various entities within the OA as required by Title 7. (All Findings)
F2
The area of responsibility for the County’s emergency response system is referred to as the Operational Area (OA).
No recommendations for this finding
F3
The OA is defined as “the County and all political subdivisions within the County area, to include cities, special districts and school districts.”
No recommendations for this finding
F4
During a disaster the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) becomes the hub of response activities.
No recommendations for this finding
F5
The EOC is a function of County government.
No recommendations for this finding
F6
In the County there are numerous entities with independent governance that are not under the jurisdiction of the County, e.g. special districts, cities, and tribal lands.
No recommendations for this finding
F7
The efforts of the EOC will be ineffective without coordination between the various County departments and all independent entities.
No recommendations for this finding
F8
Since disasters within the OA do not stop at the boundaries of any entity, coordination and cooperation between entities is vital.
No recommendations for this finding
F9
One of the primary responsibilities during a disaster response is logistics, which involves the movement of resources and personnel within the County, and from outside the OA.
No recommendations for this finding
F10
In addition to the governmental resources there exist several volunteer and private groups which specialize in emergency response: County Search and Rescue, four wheelers, Horse Posse, Air Squadron, Dog Team, Underwater Dive Team, and the ham radio operators. Most fire departments in Mendocino County are completely or almost completely volunteer.
No recommendations for this finding
F11
Special districts provide many services, primarily to the unincorporated areas of the County, including: • Water; • Sewer; • Fire protection; • Street Lighting; • Cemetery; • Air Quality; • Hospital; • Flood Control; • Community Service Districts (CSD); CSDs can provide any of the above services. • For a more complete list see Appendix A.
No recommendations for this finding
F12
The specific roles of special districts are not addressed in the Emergency Operations Plan (EOP).
No recommendations for this finding
F13
Special districts which do not conform to the training requirements for the Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) and the National Incident Management System (NIMS), may not be able to receive compensation for some disaster related damage.
No recommendations for this finding
F14
Without coordination and cooperation before, during, and after an emergency, the services provided by special districts to County residents would be severely impacted during the recovery phase of disaster response.
No recommendations for this finding
F15
The Ukiah Airport is a department of the City of Ukiah. It must operate under Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules and regulations.
No recommendations for this finding
F16
History has shown that in the event of a disaster the Ukiah Airport, with its 5,000 foot runway, would become a primary transportation hub for bringing supplies and personnel into the County and staging them for distribution to the rest of the County. Alternate destinations for these resources are the other airports within the OA such as Albion-Little River, Willits, and Covelo. There are several privately maintained runways available as well.
No recommendations for this finding
F17
Not all of the buildings at the Ukiah Airport are owned by the airport. All airport owned buildings are leased to private entities; these leases allow the buildings to be used for storage and shelter facilities in the event of an emergency.
No recommendations for this finding
F18
The Ukiah Fire Department is the agency responsible for providing fire protection to the airport.
No recommendations for this finding
F19
An example of coordination, the Ukiah Valley Fire Department (UVFD) a special district, which is immediately across South State Street from the airport, has an automatic-aid agreement to provide fire protection to the airport.
No recommendations for this finding
F20
The Native American Tribes consist of numerous independent groups which function under a complicated framework of laws (Federal and State), rules, and relationships. See Appendix B.
No recommendations for this finding
F21
Some Native American Tribes are at varying levels of developing emergency plans.
No recommendations for this finding
F22
Testimony reveals that the County currently has no organizational emergency response ties to the Native American tribes within the OA.
No recommendations for this finding

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