InfoGram 17-07: May 3, 2007

This InfoGram will be distributed weekly to provide members of the Emergency Services Sector with information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures. For further information, contact the Emergency Management and Response - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) at (301) 447-1325 or by email at emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov.

Two Perspectives of CIP for the ESS

The Emergency Management and Response—Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) has consistently written that the internal critical infrastructures of the Emergency Services Sector (ESS) can be categorized as personnel, physical assets, and communication/cyber systems. These categories of infrastructures are considered “critical” because they must remain continuously intact and operational without interruption to ensure “response-ability” for all hazards.

In other words, ESS critical infrastructures are the key people, equipment, and systems necessary for mission accomplishment—the individuals and things that keep the nation’s emergency services performing their indispensable duties regardless of circumstances. On a local, operational level this correctly implies that critical infrastructure protection (CIP) is about protecting the aforementioned from any incapacitation or destruction. This is the first perspective of CIP for the ESS.

Derived from federal government documents, the second perspective of CIP is a somewhat different understanding about what is really being protected. On the operational level it is certainly the people and objects (i.e., infrastructures) discussed in the preceding paragraph. However, from a national or strategic assessment, it is actually the “services” or mission-essential tasks performed by emergency responders for society that warrant attention, protection, and perpetuation. The emphasis here is clearly on the “services” that ESS departments and agencies provide.

Despite these two perspectives, and many other daily demands on time and resources, the EMR-ISAC encourages ESS leaders to know and practice CIP within their departments or agencies. More information about practicing CIP in a time-efficient and resource-restrained manner can be obtained at www.usfa.fema.gov/emr-isac/, by email at emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov, or by phone at 301-447-1325.

More about C2 for CIP

Preparing a community emergency plan may be among the most challenging responsibilities of emergency managers and chief officers of the emergency services. Although there has been significant progress at the local level since 9/11, a review of various primary sources persuaded the Emergency Management and Response—Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) that more must be done in numerous American municipalities to ensure a seamless, comprehensive, and executable plan exists to protect citizens from all hazards.

Considering the necessity for additional progress at many localities, the EMR-ISAC proposes reinvigorated preparations that integrate extensive coordination and collaboration (C2). One of the most important success factors in preparing and executing a community emergency plan is the ability of all stakeholder departments and agencies in the public and private sectors to coordinate and collaborate on each aspect of the plan. According to the Editor-in-Chief of the Homeland Defense Journal, Don Philpott, the central planning elements that should be included are “prevention initiatives, planning and preparedness activities, and response and recovery operations.”

Assertively working to facilitate C2 at appropriate levels of government, public sector organizations, private industry, nonprofit players, etc., can enhance critical infrastructure protection as well as the “unity of results” that comes from “unity of effort,” particularly for disasters protracted over extended periods. The EMR-ISAC further advises that human interaction is the preferred way to conduct C2 for the purposes of building permanent relationships and acquiring support partnerships for all circumstances.

Online Wildland Course

Wildland firefighting is a nearly year-round threat to the critical infrastructures of the Emergency Services Sector (ESS). In its May-August 2007 outlook, the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) predicts that “significant fire potential is expected to be higher than normal,” based on expanding drought conditions, an early fire season onset precipitated by low snow pack, early snow melt, warmer-than-normal temperatures, and an active grassland fire season. This forecast raises the possibility of injury or destruction to the personnel and physical assets of ESS organizations engaged in wildfire operations.

The Emergency Management and Response—Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) learned that the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) jointly developed a new online course, Introduction to the Incident Command System (I-100), that explains the basics of ICS. The USFA suggests that I-100 is an effective way for responders new to, or interested in, wildland or structural firefighting to examine how agencies and departments organize responses to incidents, regardless of their physical location. The self-paced course that can be completed in two to three hours could also be useful to fire crew supervisors, unit commanders called in during times of military assistance, and non-fire-agency employees who want to take on collateral duties in fire suppression.

Current wildland fire information, situation reports, fire locations, maps, and seasonal outlooks are available at NFIC.gov. Also available at the NIFC site are training dates and locations, reference materials, and services such as “6 Minutes for Safety,” an interagency initiative that, on a daily basis, addresses high-risk situations known to threaten ESS assets. Additionally, the website explains threats, e.g., unexploded ordnance, vehicle entrapment, etc., and offers precautionary information. The EMR-ISAC notes that NIFC encourages all responders to take advantage of “6 Minutes for Safety” on the NIFC Website.

Protecting Personnel Assets

As the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation’s Whistle-Stop Tour enters its final month of travel to promote the “Everyone Goes Home” message, the Emergency Management and Response—Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) considered the relationship between health and fitness and the protection of the personnel infrastructure component of Emergency Services Sector (ESS) organizations.

Heart attacks are responsible for 45 percent of fire service Line-of-Duty Deaths (LODDs), according to The New England Journal of Medicine. Nevertheless, no federal or state laws mandate minimum fitness standards, and only recommended guidelines exist. However, some departments have successfully instituted programs to protect their personnel from this serious malady.

According to FireRescue1, one organization won a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant to buy exercise equipment. A personal trainer visits the department to work with members on health and fitness issues. Some departments offer discount memberships to local fitness centers, free annual physicals, vaccinations, blood tests, and walking, running, and dieting programs. Other departments with workout facilities have added a personal trainer to teach voluntary sessions on proper exercise and nutrition.

One ESS organization mandates a daily hour of exercise, beginning at the recruit level. Most of its stations have equipment, but at those without it, personnel use local fitness centers. Each year, personnel undergo checkups of heart rate, strength, flexibility, and endurance, and take an annual ability test. The organization asked the National Association of Counties for a grant to start the program. Funding received paid for equipment, gym memberships, medical exams, and other expenses. Consequently, workers’ compensation cases and individual claims decreased substantially. In addition to considering DHS grant monies to protect personnel assets, free online programs designed to foster personnel health and fitness include “Fired Up For Fitness” from the National Volunteer Fire Council, and “Fit to Survive” from the International Association of Fire Fighters. These programs are included in a list of resources available on the USFA Website.