The Los Angeles Operational Area Critical Incident Planning and Training Alliance, referred to as the “Alliance”, was developed out of the need to enhance emergency planning among multi-jurisdictional agencies and inter-departmental cooperation and coordination within Los Angeles County, identified functionally as the Los Angeles Operational Area (LAOA).  As a planning partnership, the “Alliance” facilitates the strategic application, dissemination and management of information, and resources to address critical incidents and events. The “Alliance” has developed comprehensive process guides and provided training and workshop/functional exercise programs throughout the LAOA.

The LAOA is an extremely large, densely populated and complex region.  It is home to over ten million people covering 4800 square miles of terrain and several government jurisdictions (88 individual cities). Beyond this baseline, the LAOA faces a wide range of natural and human induced threats/hazards, which could result in a disaster or catastrophic incident.

Disasters and catastrophic incidents will not respect jurisdictional boundaries. Past incidents have shown that responding jurisdictional capabilities may quickly be over tasked. The “Alliance” focus is on prediction/prevention, mitigation, response, and recovery to these types of catastrophic incidents. This shall be accomplished through an all-inclusive partnership among local, county, state, public and private sector and non-profit stakeholders. The “Alliance” development model includes the cities identified in the Los Angeles/Long Beach Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI), the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The “Alliance” methodologies and strategies are being designed as a model program which is scalable, exportable, and deliverable nationwide.  The “Alliance” is strategically aligned with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Council (DHS/HSC), the National All Hazards Planning Scenarios, the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP), the National Incident Management System (NIMS), and the National Response Framework (NRF).

The “Alliance” is currently focused on four distinct, interoperable and integrated initiatives:

The “Alliance” concentrated its first operational phase toward the development of a comprehensive approach to segmented mass evacuations within the LAOA. This approach included the development of a single comprehensive all inclusive regional evacuation guide which could be used by emergency planners.

During a critical incident or event it will be impractical, if not impossible, to evacuate the entire LAOA.  However, it is expected that large areas or segments of an area can be successfully evacuated.

The “Alliance” also has built relationships with local, state, tribal and federal entities and agencies in an effort to develop seamless interaction and cooperation during a disaster and/or a catastrophic event.

The “Alliance” provides protocols, preparedness, response, and coordination process guides for incidents that have the potential to produce extraordinary levels of casualties, cause segmented mass-evacuations, mass care and sheltering needs, as well as reception and recovery for incidents that damage and/or disrupt the continuity of operations within the LAOA.

The “Alliance” is in the process of developing strategies and process guidance for the mitigation of large-scale mass care and shelter operations, to include planning for special needs populations, initial and advanced medical treatment, enhanced transportation to outside jurisdictions, animal relocation, pre-designated Family Assistance Centers, and the development of jurisdictional and regional shelter facilities.

The “Alliance” has identified and developed public/private/non-profit/faith-based partnerships outreach to create a unified information sharing forum along with comprehensive disaster training and workshop/exercise capability.

The “Alliance” is focused on the development and delivery of Tabletop Exercises, Functional/Command Post operations, and a regional multi-discipline Critical Incident Information Collection/Analysis Team (ICAT).  The “Alliance” and its stakeholders work closely to cultivate public/private/non-profit all-inclusive partnerships in an effort to unify resource and risk management within the LAOA.