Introduction
Eugene, Oregon is a clean, green, diverse and friendly city. Yet, we are vulnerable to several natural and human-made hazards that have the potential to damage property and increase loss of life. The city of Eugene needs a functional Emergency Operations Center (EOC) due to the wide diversity of hazards. We can’t ignore the earthquakes, floods, extreme weather, wildfires, and even tornadoes. First, this proposal will examine the risks and vulnerabilities Eugene faces during hazards. Second, the details on the location, design and benefits of an EOC. Lastly, attached is a recommended budget and a designed layout of the proposed EOC.
Risk Assessment
Unlike many other hazards, earthquakes can occur unexpectedly and without a warning at any time of the year. Located in the Pacific Northwest, Oregon, has experienced many earthquakes. In fact, Oregon is one of the most quake-prone areas in the United States. The small ones are on average less than 3.0 magnitude, which happen more frequently however may not be felt. The larger quakes are on regularly a magnitude 5.0. Like the 5.6 magnitude Scotts Mills earthquake in 1993, “it affected thousands of people and caused more than $30 million in damage in the Portland metro area” (Yeats, 2004). This is because Oregon is located in the Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ), which is a “600-mile fault that runs from northern California up to British Columbia and is about 70-100 miles off the Pacific coast shoreline” (Cascadia Subduction Zone, 2012). According to experts, in the next 50 years this fault has the potential to create an earthquake of a magnitude of 8 or higher that could last up to five minutes. This quake could also generate secondary disasters, like a tsunami of up to 100 feet in height. If this is true, we can anticipate being without services or assistance for at least few weeks or longer. This would be difficult to overcome for our citizens, businesses, schools, government, and communities as a whole. With that being said, Eugene’s main vulnerability would be infrastructure and personnel that have done very little to prepare, respond and recover from a CSZ earthquake. A quake that big would be unfamiliar, though not impossible, to plan for.
Floods are a threat to life and loss of property, crops, land, roads, and utilities. Is important to keep an eye on rivers and streams, as flash floods can occur suddenly due to quick-rising water along a stream or a low-lying area. The Eugene-Springfield area is subject to flooding from several sources, including; Riverine flooding from the Middle Fork of the Willamette River, the Willamette River, and the McKenzie River, riverine flooding from numerous smaller creeks and sloughs, and, local storm water drainage flooding (Yeats, 2004). Any structure within the city’s flood plain is at risk of flooding. Areas away from creeks and streams also see flooding, all depending on how heavy the rainfall is or how long it rains. However, floods have a moderate probability and vulnerability risk in Eugene. This suggests a flooding event is probable to happen in the next 35 to 70 years, affecting around 10 percent of the city’s population. Eugene gets on average 45 inches of rain per year, that is more than the United States average of 38 inches of rain per year (Cascadia Subduction Zone, 2012). Floods can also cause secondary disasters, such as landslides and erosion. There is the danger of transporting debris and toxic products, and the vulnerability of people and infrastructures located underneath steep slopes. It is important to point out that the flood maps contain some outdated information of the county. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), is currently working with the state of Oregon to update the floodplain maps. Last thing to note about this hazard in Eugene, is the probability for stormwater flooding to occur is high, meaning it will likely happen between the next 10-35 years.
Wildfires are a vital part of Oregon’s ecosystem; “when allowed to burn in areas where they do not impact human development, are regenerative for the forest, revitalizing for the watershed, renew the soil, and reset the clock for the ecosystem” (Donovan, 2014). However, it is also a hazard to life and property. Wildfires are caused by either environment or people that cause damage of forests, field crops, and personal property. A year ago, wildfires in Oregon were above average at 2,040. According to the Oregon Department of Forestry, a total of 664,842 acres burned which was roughly 42 percent above the 10-year average (Donovan, 2014). The fire season usually starts roughly around June until September, but sadly wildfires have happened every day of the year. With that being said, the risks and possible impacts of wildfire are growing. It is critical to note that drought expands fire season longer. Temporary loss caused by a fire can include the damage of wood, nature, scenic views and watersheds. A secondary disaster can also occur from fires like the vulnerability to flooding due to the damage of watersheds. Life-long effects include smaller timber crops, minimal entrée to affected recreational zones, and damage to infrastructure. All these effects take a toll on the community emotionally and financially, as well as exhaustion of our first responders. History shows there has not been large wildfires in Eugene yet, but the chances could still be there as we do see small fires through the year.
The vulnerabilities are the following;
o Steeper slopes cause fire to spread more rapidly than flat terrain.
o The vegetation is mainly small trees, grass or brush as they have low moisture levels.
o Limitation in; firefighter personnel, water resources for fire suppression, and extensive response time for fire alarm.
Severe Weather in Eugene includes; winter storms, hail, severe heat, lightning, and tornadoes. Winter storms particularly have a high probability and vulnerability in Eugene. These storms are caused by high winds and heavy rains. The cascading events are a hazard as well, such as heavy rains bringing floods, debris slides and landslides. The high winds can affect transportations systems, infrastructures, power outage, and even flying debris. Winter storms happen every year in Eugene and can range from low temperatures and cold winds to heavy snow and freezing rain. Heavy snowfall is “four inches or more in a 12-hour period, or six or more inches in a 24-hour period in non-mountainous zones” (Yeats, 2004). Fortunately, winter storms can be forecasted allowing time for preparedness and response. During the thunderstorms there are mitigation approaches to avoid hail damage. Tornadoes occasionally happen in the state, but Oregon is not among the 39 states with any reported tornado deaths since 1950. In 2013 Eugene conducted a vulnerability assessment for severe weather. The results from this assessment confirmed that “severe winter storm events have the potential to cause region-wide cascading system failures” (Yeats, 2004). The main two affected sectors would be electricity and transportation.
For the purpose of this proposal, hazardous materials are materials that have harmful effects on individual’s health. Although depending on the material, the result could be short term or long term such as sickness, injuries or deaths. It could also depend on how long the exposure; minutes, days, weeks, even years. The probability of this hazard event is high, and the vulnerability is moderate. Pipelines, railroads and areas around the transportation route may be vulnerable.
Vulnerable populations are important to locate when considering any hazard. These populations should direct attention to certain locations, better planning or pay attention to certain characteristics. Of all the special populations located in Eugene the following are the most seen; household without a vehicle, female headed household, population experiencing a disability and economic vulnerability. Other vulnerabilities include; seniors 80 and older, manufactured homes, Latino and minority households and children 17 and under.
Design
An EOC serves as a room used to direct on-scene operations and “as a nerve center during both small emergencies and large disasters” (Holdeman, 2018). The ideal location for this EOC is downtown Eugene. The biggest advantages are the ability to access the building from different routes, and the proximity to the University of Oregon as their EOC is a very functional one. The ideal location has the police and fire station nearby helps with everyday training, exercises and classes. During emergencies the proximity helps with the coordination, better response and sharing resources between facilities if needed. It is also important to note, during terrorist attacks, EOC’s are the perfect spot to hit if needed to create chaos. The more resources and first responders available nearby the better for the EOC. After taking all this into consideration, City Hall is the best option for Eugene’s EOC. This location also has great gated parking area for security, gas stations and plenty of food sources nearby such as grocery stores and restaurants.
The EOC will be a multipurpose layout (appendix A), which will be used for training, meetings, exercises and classes for firemen, police, and town officials. The town of Eugene doesn’t activate their EOC often, but due to the specific hazards being activated for days could be a norm. Although there is negatives to this layout such as set-up time, physical set-up and lack of focus, they can all be easily fixed. Nowadays everybody carries their own laptop which is easier for time and physical set up. Also, screens all over the room will help maintain focus and have the eye on the prize. The multipurpose layout has the ability to have one big room but having folding partitions to create more rooms and ability to host training classes or meetings when EOC not activated.
The main room will be the conference room which will remain untouched and ready to-go. This will facilitate and work for small emergencies that may not need full activation. This room will have the necessary desks, chairs, computer, landline phones, radios, and microphones. Four big screens will be in the front of the room attracting the attention with important information; live cameras, detailed orders, city updates and any other important information for the rest of the EOC. On the other walls there will be one screen on each displaying live news, as well as two interactive white boards and maps of the city. Every chair will be labeled with their according emergency support functions (ESF). Since the main conference room will remain intact at all times, the other two rooms will have to be set up in case of emergency. The tables will have wheels for easier rotation and plugs all around the floor to be able to plug in all the technology; computers, Plain Old Telephones (POTs), Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), and radios.
All around the room will be plenty of storage where everything will be nicely stored and labeled. Everything needed for a functional EOC would be in these storages; all technology, extra office supplies, water bottles, snacks, pillows and blankets. As the Eugene City Hall is being renovated it is important to keep in mind the EOC and design according to Oregon’s main hazards. With that being said, having a kitchen and sleeping area is important as severe weather or a powerful earthquake would mean the EOC being activated for weeks. Speaking of severe weather, a back-up generator and an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) are a must in order to continue to work without any interruptions.
The security of the building starts outside where the parking lot will be gated and work through employee’s toll tag. In case of the employee having a rental car or such, there is plenty of open parking up front but still required a badge to go through the front into the EOC room. Employees must wear their badges visible as well at all times as there will be cameras all over monitoring and recording all activity inside and outside. All media conferences will be done in the ball room located at the front of City Hall where there are still security procedures but no important information nearby and away from restricted areas.
Conclusion
A functional EOC is needed in Eugene to build a stronger and more resilient community. The number one goal is to improve overall disaster preparedness by maintaining wide situational awareness in the town. Other goals are to coordinate better communication, obtain and coordinate critical resources, facilitate recovery process, evaluate hazards and formulate contingency plans. The constructing of an EOC is fundamental to the town to reduce loss of lives and property. The town of Eugene needs to be ready for all hazards, even the unknown ones and explore beyond the comfort zones. There’s so much going on every day in the world, one can never be too ready to respond to a disaster.