Fire Departments
This is the first phase in emergency and natural disaster management that responds to the actual incident. An disaster response team usually includes firefighters, policemen, and medical teams sent in as a first measure to contain a situation before it gets out of hand, search for survivors and assess the situation. Disaster response and disaster aid is the step of disaster management that precedes mitigation and preparedness. Response efforts are greatly improved when proper mitigation and preparedness is established first before a disaster occurs.
Emergency Services:
When a crisis situation occurs and disaster response teams are needed, emergency services are sent to the location to contain it and save lives. Emergency services are organizations established to ensure the safety of the public. Each organization is designed to handle different types of situations and other some specifically handle situations that are severe in nature.
Main Types of Emergency Services:
• Police: Tasked with providing community safety and enforce the law to reduce crime.
• Fire Departments: Provide disaster aid by carrying out fire and rescue missions and other disaster response services.
• Medical Service: Medical staffs that provide disaster aid by tending to injured persons.
Other Emergency and Disaster Response Organizations:
Coastguard: Patrol the coast to ensure security near the ocean and also carry out search and rescue missions.
Military: Used in times of catastrophic disasters to provide disaster response through bomb disposal and relieving civil violence.
Technical Rescue: Provide disaster aid in search and rescue missions that require specialty services to carry out.
Wildland fire suppression: A service that predicts, identifies and helps to control wildfires from starting or spreading.
Civil Emergency Services:
• Public Utilities: These emergency services specialize in electricity and gas to safeguard these dangerous hazards.
• Emergency Roadside Service: Provide disaster response to drivers that are stranded or need help on the roads.
• Poison Control: Provide support for poisoned victims who need disaster aid.
• Animal Control: Provide disaster aid for situations involving potentially dangerous animals.
Effective emergency service coordination involves all agencies working in a disaster situation to have proper communication. Without useful communication in a disaster, many lives could be lost or the situation could become worse. The national standard, National Incident Management System (NIMS), is a structure of emergency management used in the United States and developed by the United States Department of Homeland Security. Deriving from the Incident Command System established in California after a catastrophic wildfire, NIMS provides a system of effective communication established between agencies. These agencies can be located in different jurisdictions, whether they are private, public or governmental organizations. While the NIMS structure is only used in severe disaster response situations, millions of emergency workers take NIMS courses to better their skills and management in any situation, no matter how severe.
