Attachment
City Council Study Session
on Emergency Management –
Tabletop Exercise
Situation Manual
March 23, 2023
This Situation Manual provides exercise participants with all the necessary tools for their roles in the exercise. Some exercise material is intended for the exclusive use of exercise planners, facilitators, and evaluators, but players may view other materials that are necessary to their performance. All exercise participants may view the Situation Manual.
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 2 EXERCISE OVERVIEW
Exercise Name
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise
Exercise Dates Thursday, March 23, 2023
Scope
The City Council Study Session on Emergency Management aims to engage the Mayor and City Council in discussions on emergency response actions, the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) functions, communication with elected officials, and updated plans and procedures.
The session will include a discussion-based, facilitated tabletop exercise.
Mission Area(s) Response, Recovery
Core
Capabilities
Operational Communications
Operational Coordination
Planning
Public Information and Warning
Objectives
Engage the Mayor and City Council in discussion on:
1. Actions to take during an emergency,
2. How the EOC functions in a disaster and communicates with elected officials, and
3. The updated plans and procedures that guide our emergency response.
Threat or
Hazard Earthquake
Scenario A major (M7.2) Hayward fault earthquake (See “Scenario – Focused Discussion” for additional information)
Participating
Organizations See Appendix B – Exercise Participants
Point of
Contact on
Exercise Design
Raymond Riordan
Director
City Manager’s Office - Office of Emergency Management
[email protected]
408-794-7050
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 3 GENERAL INFORMATION
Exercise Objectives and Core Capabilities
The following exercise objectives in the table below describe the expected outcomes for the exercise. The objectives are linked to core capabilities, which are distinct critical elements necessary to achieve the specific mission area(s).
The objectives and aligned core capabilities were selected by the Exercise Planning Team after an extensive review of lessons learned, after-actions reports, and newly develop local emergency management products.
Exercise Objectives Core Capability
Engage the Mayor and City Council in
discussion on actions to take during an
emergency.
Operational Coordination
Public Information and Warning
Engage the Mayor and City Council in
discussion on how the EOC functions in a
disaster and communicates with the elected
officials.
Operational Coordination
Operational Communications
Engage the Mayor and City Council in
discussion on the updated plans and
procedures that guide our emergency response
Planning
Table 1. Exercise Objectives and Associated Core Capabilities Participant Roles and Responsibilities
The term participant encompasses many groups of people, not just those playing in the exercise.
Groups of participants involved in the exercise, and their respective roles and responsibilities, are as follows:
• Players respond to the situation presented based on expert knowledge of response procedures, current plans and procedures, and insights derived from training.
• Facilitators provide situation updates and moderate discussions. They also provide additional information or resolve questions, as required.
• Presenters provide information about topics in emergency management.
• Observers primarily view the exercise. They may ask relevant questions.
The following table lists the City entities participating in the tabletop exercise. See Appendix B – Exercise Participants for a more detailed list.
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 4 Participating City Entities
Mayor’s Office Housing Department
City Council Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement
Department
City Attorney’s Office Police Department
City Manager’s Office Public Works Department
Department of Parks, Recreation, and
Neighborhood Services City Manager’s Office of Communications Department of Transportation City Manager’s Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs
Environmental Services Department City Manager’s Office of Emergency Management
Finance Department City Manager’s Office of Employee Relations Fire Department
Table 2. City Entities Participating in Tabletop Exercise Exercise Structure
Introduction
The Mayor will provide welcoming remarks and turn the program over to the City Manager.
The City Manager will provide keynote opening and frame the day and the role of the City Council.
Module 1
Complete a review of past EOC activations, with emphasis on COVID-19 and the recent 2022- 2023 winter storms and atmospheric rivers. Review elected officials’ role during an emergency and the purpose of a Disaster District Office (DDO).
This module will focus on Objective 1.
Module 2
Introduce 7.2M earthquake scenario and the roles of the EOC and the Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP). Also review the role of the different EOC and Department Operations Centers (DOC) staff positions. Various EOC and DOC representatives will be asked to contribute to the discussion. There will also be discussion about some of the City’s current emergency planning efforts. Participants can expect to respond to questions that develop organically during this module.
This module will focus on Objectives 2 and 3.
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 5 Exercise Guidelines
This is intended to be a safe, open environment. The problems and challenges are real and there is no “textbook” solution. The following exercise ground rules have been developed to ensure that the goals and objectives are met in a reasonable amount of time and the tabletop exercise runs smoothly:
• Keep the exercise’s objectives in mind throughout the exercise; • Treat the scenario incidents as real events and play your appropriate role; • Participate openly and focus discussions on appropriate topics – asking questions, sharing thoughts, and offering forward-looking, problem-solving suggestions, which are strongly encouraged, as these will enhance the exercise experience; • The Mayor and each Councilmember can interrupt two times during the study session to ask a question or make a comment. Once the Mayor and all Councilmembers have used their two interrupts, everyone will get two more interrupts for the duration of the study session;
• Keep your questions and comments focused and consider the time constraints; and • Respect the observations, opinions, and perspectives of others, as the discussions will explore a variety of policies, decisions, actions, and key relevant issues from different sources.
Exercise Assumptions and Artificialities
In any exercise, a number of assumptions and artificialities may be necessary to complete play in the time allotted. During this exercise, the following apply:
• The scenario is plausible, and events occur as they are presented; • There is no “hidden agenda” or any trick questions; and • All players receive information at the same time.
Exercise Control
The facilitated tabletop exercise uses a scenario-based approach to create the decision-making environment for you, as a participant, to act in your role. This is a no-fault exercise that focuses on expanding the knowledge base among the Mayor and City Councilmembers and help set expectations of how they receive information from the EOC during an incident, and ideas of what to do to support their community.
The facilitators are responsible for keeping discussions on track with exercise objectives and ensuring that all issues are explored (time permitting). In general, the facilitators will keep side conversations to a minimum and keep discussions on track and within established time limits.
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 6 SCENARIO-FOCUSED DISCUSSION
Module Schedule
Timeframe Total Time Activity
01:00 pm – 01:30 pm 30 minutes Arrival & Check-in
01:30 pm – 01:35 pm 5 minutes Introduction
01:35 pm – 02:20 pm 45 minutes Module 1 – Review EOC Activations & Roles of the Elected Officials
02:20 pm – 04:05 pm 105 minutes Module 2 – Tabletop Exercise 04:05 pm – 04:25 pm 20 minutes Public Comment
04:25 pm – 04:30 pm 5 minutes Closing Remarks
Introduction – 5 minutes
Mayor’s Welcoming Remarks
City Manager’s Opening Remarks
Module 1 – 45 minutes
35-minute module + 10-minute Q&A
Objective 1: Engage the Mayor and City Council in discussions on actions to take during an emergency.
Facilitator: Ray Riordan (10 minutes)
Review of past EOC activations:
• COVID-19 – March 4, 2020 to February 2022
• SCU Lightning Complex Fire – August 18, 2020 to September 2, 2020 • Race Street Gas Leak – August 25, 2020 to August 27, 2020 • George Floyd Protests – May 31, 2020 to June 1, 2020
• Public Safety Power Shutoff Events – October 12, 2020 – October 27, 2020 • Flood Watch – January 26, 2021
• Gas Leak – August 25, 2021 – August 26, 2021
• Flood Watch - October 23, 2021
• Home Depot Fire – April 9, 2022
• Extreme Heat Event & Power Vulnerability– August 31, 2022 to September 9, 2022 • Winter Storm & Atmospheric Rivers – December 30, 2022 to January 20, 2023
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 7 Facilitator: Ray Riordan (15 minutes)
Discussion of recent experiences:
• What were some fears and/or concerns you had before the 2022/2023 Winter Storm & Atmospheric Rivers?
• What was the best thing EOC staff did to help communicate with you during these 2022/2023 Winter Storm & Atmospheric Rivers?
Presenter: Karen Truong (10 minutes)
Review:
• Purpose of the DDO.
• Communication feedback loop involving the Emergency Public Information Officer , City Council Liaison and community.
• Triggers for DDO Activation.
Questions:
• What steps will the Councilmember and staff take to stand up the DDO? • How will Councilmember know when/where to activate the DDO? • Who will the Councilmember/Council Office need to notify of this decision? • How will situational status information from the community be collected and communicated to the EOC?
• How will communications, guidance, and any other emergency public information be disseminated from the EOC to the public through the DDO?
Facilitator: Ray Riordan
10-minute Q&A:
• Are there any additional clarifications or questions?
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 8 Disaster District Office Activation Chart
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 9 Module 2 – 105 minutes
100-minute module + 5-minute closing remarks
Objective 2: Engage the Mayor and City Council in discussion on how the EOC functions, and communicates with the elected officials.
Objective 3: Engage the Mayor and City Council in discussion on the updated plans and procedures that guide our emergency response.
Facilitators: Lee Wilcox and Kip Harkness
Overview of the Continuity of Operations Plan (Lee Wilcox) • Discuss about the critical services and infrastructures that are required to continue even when the EOC is activated.
Overview of the EOC Functions (Kip Harkness)
• Each EOC Section Coordinator and Emergency Public Information Officer will provide a brief introduction of their name, section, and general roles and responsibilities.
Earthquake Scenario (Lee Wilcox)
• A massive 7.2 magnitude earthquake erupts along the Hayward fault.
Tabletop Exercise
• Facilitation of Council conversation and questions. (Lee Wilcox) • Facilitation of the EOC, ensuring communication and coordination among the teams in the center and in the field. (Kip Harkness)
Council Discussion (Lee Wilcox)
• Q&A if time permits: Mayor and Councilmembers ask any questions they have following end of tabletop exercise.
• Feedback if time permits: Facilitator will pose some/all of these questions to Mayor and Councilmembers
o What insight have you gained from this study session that you want us to keep in mind as we continue working on the City’s emergency management efforts? o What are some emergency management areas where we should challenge ourselves and/or improve?
o What strengths do we bring to the emergency management efforts? o What do you need to do to be prepared as an individual and as a community leader?
City Manager’s Closing Remarks
• We are all first responders in times of crisis.
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 10 Emergency Operations Center Organization Chart
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise 11 Public Comment – 20 minutes
Closing Remarks – 5 minutes
Mayor’s Closing Remarks
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise Appendix A: Exercise Schedule A-1 A PPENDIX A: EXERCISE SCHEDULE
Timeframe Total Time Activity
01:00 pm – 01:30 pm 30 minutes Arrival & Check-In
01:30 pm – 01:35 pm 5 minutes Introduction
01:35 pm – 02:20 pm 45 minutes
Module 1 - Review EOC
Activations & Role of the Elected
Officials
02:20 pm – 04:05 pm 105 minutes Module 2 - Tabletop Exercise 04:05 pm – 04:25 pm 20 minutes Public Comment
04:25 pm – 04:30 pm 5 minutes Closing Remarks
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise Appendix B: Exercise Participants B-1 APPENDIX B: EXERCISE PARTICIPANTS
EXERCISE PARTICIPANTS
MAYOR’S OFFICE
Mayor Matt Mahan
CITY COUNCIL
District 1 – Rosemary Kamei
District 2 – Sergio Jimenez
District 3 – Omar Torres
District 4 – David Cohen
District 5 – Peter Ortiz
District 6 – Devora “Dev” Davis
District 7 – Bien Doan
District 8 – Domingo Candelas
District 9 – Pam Foley
District 10 – Arjun Batra
EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT
City Manager Jennifer Maguire
Assistant City Manager Leland Wilcox
City Attorney Nora Frimann
EXERCISE FACILITATORS
Assistant City Manager Leland Wilcox
Deputy City Manager Kip Harkness
Director of Emergency Management Raymond Riordan
EXERCISE PRESENTERS
Emergency Management Staff Member Karen Truong
EOC MANAGEMENT SECTION
EOC Director – Kip Harkness
Liaison Branch Coordinator – Blage Zelalich
Emergency Public Information Officer (EPIO)– Carolina Camarena Safety Officer – Joseph Gregory
Legal Advisor – Cameron Day
Access & Functional Needs Coordinator – Christopher Hickey
EOC OPERATIONS SECTION
Operations Section Coordinator – Rob Lloyd
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise Appendix B: Exercise Participants B-2 Fire and Rescue Branch – Chief Robert Sapien
Law Branch (Police PCC) – Captain Brian Matchett
Public Works Branch – Mathew Nguyen
Mass Care Branch – Neil Rufino
Mass Care Branch: Housing Unit– Jacky Morales-Ferrand
Damage Inspection Branch – Lisa Joiner
Transportation Branch – Rick Scott
EOC PLANNING SECTION
Planning Section Coordinator – Jay McAmis
Situation Status Public Works/Utility Coordination – J Guevara
EOC LOGISTICS SECTION
Logistics Section Coordinator – Walter Lin
EOC FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION SECTION
Finance & Administration Section Coordinator – Alice Vurich
EOC RECOVERY SECTION
Recovery Section Coordinator – Rosalynn Hughey
ADDITIONAL ATTENDEES
Environmental Services DOC – Jennifer Brown
Parks, Recreation, & Neighborhood Services DOC – Kendra Yarn Planning, Building & Code Enforcement DOC – Bill Mayne
Public Works DOC – Norman Mascarinas
Transportation DOC – Jennifer Seguin
Situation Manual
City Council Study Session on Emergency Management – Tabletop Exercise Appendix C: Acronyms C-1
APPENDIX C: ACRONYMS
Acronym Term
COOP Continuity of Operations Plan
DDO Disaster District Office
DOC Department Operations Center
EOC Emergency Operations Center