III. The State and Each County’s Role Integrating an Animal Plan into Your Operational Area (OA) Emergency Response Plan Animal issues, like all other disaster response activities, must be a part of your Operational Area (OA) Emergency Response Plan. For a county to be eligible for State disaster aid, they must use (SEMS) to respond; this is the same for animal issues. An organized plan will allow your county to effectively prevent and respond to animal issues during a disaster, organize local resources, facilitate mutual aid activities relating to animal issues, and utilize broader regional and state resources. Ultimately, the county animal response plan should be adopted as an annex to the OA Emergency Response Plan. A "single point of contact," the County Animal Coordinator, will be part of the County Emergency Operations Center (EOC). Once developed, a county’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will outline preparation, response, and recovery activities for animal issues. The Role of the Counties in the Nevada’s Animal Response in Emergency System (NARES) Nevada Animal Response in Emergency System (NARES) organizes state resources, in support of local government responding to animal issues, during a state level emergency in accordance with SEMS. During a disaster, if local resources are insufficient to meet existing needs, local government may request state assistance. When this assistance is requested; the Division of Emergency Management will activate NARES. The ability to respond effectively at the state level largely depends upon planning accomplished within each OA prior to a disaster. Since the majority of volunteers, resources, and organization during a disaster originate in the local area, it is essential that counties and local agencies have animal response plans in place in order for NARES to function effectively. The NARES Plan is intended to facilitate mutual aid between counties.
|