S-203 Group Workbook
Instructions:
Exercise 2B: Initial Attack Information Needs
Instructions:
The instructor will read a scenario; you are to listen to the scenario from the perspective of your assigned role.�
You will have five minutes to discuss the scenario and write a list of what information you want.
What information do LOCAL UNIT EMPLOYEES want?
Unit 4 Fact Sheet Exercise
WHAT: Earthen dam on the Rio Bravo River Collapsed in Rogue County, Colorado. Piney Bluff campground was impacted by the water, there were several people camping at the campground when the incident occurred and at least 4 are reported as injured. Laughlin Road which provides access for High Peak Resort is destroyed, where it crosses the river about .5 miles downstream from the dam site.
WHEN: At 2:00 p.m. on May 25 (Memorial Day Weekend)
WHERE: Approximately 4 miles northeast of Grass Valley, Colorado.
WHO: The dam collapse is primarily impacting the New Line Hamlet community (population 60), which lies one mile below the dam site. Many homes are located on the banks of the river, downstream from the dam. Cooperators currently involve the:
- Rogue County Sheriff with mutual aid provided by
- Laughlin Volunteer Fire Department,
- Federal Bureau of Reclamation,
- Colorado Department of Water Resources,
- US Forest Service, and
- Bureau of Land Management.
Check with your local sheriff’s department for information on evacuation areas.
WHY: Cause is unknown.
HOW: Collectively, local and state responders are providing 75 employees to assess resource damage and help with flood control measures. Responders indicate that it will take at least five days to repair the dam.
WEATHER OUTLOOK: Unseasonably high temperatures are predicted for the next week, which could cause snow to melt faster than normal and increase the amount of water flowing downstream.
Unit 6A Exercise
Instructions: Read the exercise and develop community relations plan to deal with issues assigned to your group.
https://sites.google.com/view/s-203-introduction-to-incident/unit-6
Scenario:The Pitchfork Fire started two days ago during a thunderstorm. It has burned almost 10,000 acres and shows little sign of slowing down. Extreme fire behavior is predicted as winds are expected to gust to 35 miles per hour, relative humidity drops into single digits, and temperatures hover in the mid-90s. The fire is located about six miles northwest of Ridgetop, a town of 1,200 people, which depends heavily on summer tourism. Several issues are brewing in Ridgetop and the residents are becoming more vocal about them. The IC is worried that any one of these community concerns could turn into a major issue. He wants to spend more time concentrating on fire strategy and less on dealing with the community. He wants the PIOs to come up with a community relations plan that will resolve as many of these issues as possible.
Group 5 Issues:
Proposed Actions: 1) Objective: Tackle the rumor head on and have experts provide factual information. To that end, we will hold a community meeting, invite community members, elected officials and business owners. The PIO shop will have a representative from Ops, Weather and Fire Behavior. PIO will state that we are aware of the rumors, facilitate the meeting and share that the intent is to listen to their concerns and provide them with accurate information. Operations will relay the latest statistics on the fire, location, acres burned, direction perimeter, direction, tactics and emphasize that our priority is to protect life and property. Ops will emphasize that we are focusing our efforts and resources in the areas that currently face the highest risk, informed by the latest weather and fire behavior information. If conditions change, we will be prepared to shift our tactics and resources and collaborate with the Sheriff’s Department to ensure communities are getting the information they need. Ops will share that we have a combination of 100 firefighters,, ground support (dozers, water tenders) and aviation resources that are working hard to contain the fire. On our aviation assets (we have 2 UAS, 2 Type 1 helicopters, a Large air tanker). The UAS or drones are surveying the fire so we can be targetted about where we prioritize our firefighters, equipment and water and fire retardant drops. We will stay there to answer questions and ensure community members know where to go get updates on the fire, be it on inciweb, social media and via our phone line.
On the congressional front, we recognize that this is common during incidents. First, we will reach out to the local unit PAO to get intelligence on the Congressional office and the best point of contact. Upon getting this information, so we know what we’re getting into, we will reach out directly to the Congoffering to brief her or her staff and pull in a delegate from Operations. The intent will be to hear the concerns of the Congresswoman, directly or through her staff, ensure that 1) they have the latest information on the fire and our actions, that 2) they’re getting our daily updates and invite her to upcoming community meetings.
Unit 6A Exercise
Instructions: Read the exercise and develop community relations plan to deal with issues assigned to your group.
https://sites.google.com/view/s-203-introduction-to-incident/unit-6
Unit 6B Exercise
Instructions: Read the exercise and develop a strategy to deal with issues assigned to your group.
https://sites.google.com/view/s-203-introduction-to-incident/unit-6
Group 2 Issues:
The north end of the fire is particularly troublesome. Access is limited to helicopters because the terrain is rugged. The operations section chief decided to spike out two crews on that edge of the fire during the second day. Both of the crews are from out of state. Radio contact is the only means of communication. At the morning briefing, you pick up information that the spiked-out crews are feeling isolated from the rest of the fire organization and not getting much news about how fire fighting is progressing. You’ve heard that the spiked crews might be there for another week. What can you do to help the crews in spike camp?
Establish a frequency that will be specific to the two crews on spike camp. Since radio is the only means of communication, we will ensure that all presenters for the pre-ops and ops briefing are speaking directly into the radio so the information reaches the crews.
If they are able to come back, we can position a bulletin Board including Map, Fact Sheet, and ensure that they get copies of the IAP.
If they the crews questions outside of the briefing, PIO shop will offer to make ourselves available for Q&A after each briefing and coordinate with other IMT members to be prepared to make themselves available for inquiries from the field. If this isn’t enough, we can also offer a separate “Office Hour” to address any inquiries they may have and coordinate with the Safety Officer in the scenario that any mental health issues arise.
Unit 7 Exercise – Communications Strategy
Situation statement (who, what, where, why):
Concerns:
Communication Objectives:
Audiences:
Internal:
External: Land/home owners, permittees, Recreational Community
Methods:
Key Messages/Talking Points:Rapid Growth and additional fires. Steep access, heavy fuel load, Evacuations possible in the next 24, Resources are ordered and expected to begin work. Fire camp is being set up at Pitchfork School
Monitoring Methods (How will you know you’re succeeding?): Lessening of incoming requests