Emergency Response Plan

Weekend Warrior Experience

721 Little Mountain Road

Anderson, SC 29606

Note: This is a working draft. Latest update 10.9.2023

Purpose

The purpose of the Weekend Warrior Experience Emergency Response Plan (ERP) is to establish guidelines, assign responsibilities, and promote awareness in responding to emergencies that may occur at a Weekend Warrior event and which may affect the greater local community. Additionally, the plan is designed to provide guidelines to assist those affected in dealing with crisis, coordinate with external entities, and provide resources to expedite the return to normal operations with minimal negative impact. This plan was created to complement plans already in place on the state, county, and city level, and is intended to be comprehensive, sustainable, and flexible.

The Weekend Warrior ERP is based on the Incident Command System (ICS), a universal emergency management system that conforms to FEMA’s National Incident Management System (NIMS) designed to address all levels of emergency response. The ICS provides the following components:

  • Common Terminology – to enhance operations and communication (especially with external fire/police/EMS).

  • Unified Command Structure – to ensure responsibilities are delegated and decisions are made at the appropriate level and that one voice represents Weekend Warrior.

  • Span of Control – so that supervision and responsibility will be limited within a manageable range.

  • Comprehensive Resource Management – requiring the coordination and inventorying of necessary resources, both within Weekend Warrior and from outside resources.

Priorities

Weekend Warrior will respond to an emergency in a safe and timely manner; will provide support to off-site emergency response agencies; will assist staff, volunteers, players, and vendors; and will effectively communicate the status of events. The order of priorities will be:

  1. To protect the lives, safety, and health of Weekend Warrior staff,  volunteers, players,  and vendors who may be at an event.

  2. To protect facilities, equipment, and services from loss during a continuing emergency event.

  3. To effectively communicate with all involved parties throughout the duration of the emergency event.

  4. To provide for the continuation of Weekend Warrior operations and services that have been disrupted or damaged by an emergency incident.

Scope

These guidelines apply to all staff, players, and vendors, and to all Weekend Warrior buildings and grounds. They are intended to enable Weekend Warrior to protect life and property and minimize damage that may be caused by emergency situations.

Any person at a Weekend Warrior event who witnesses or receives information regarding an emergency is instructed to immediately contact the Safety Officer via text or voice call (864) 402-9576. 

Assumptions

The Emergency Response Plan (ERP) is predicated on a realistic approach to problems likely to be encountered at Weekend Warrior during an emergency incident. Hence, the following are general assumptions:

  • An incident may occur at any time with little or no warning.

  • An emergency may be declared according to the guidelines in this plan if information indicates that such a condition has developed or is expected to develop.

  • Weekend Warrior Safety personnel will respond to emergency incidents, assess the situation, and initiate a pre-planned response to the incident. Most incidents can likely be managed by Safety personnel; however, if the incident calls for a response that exceeds their ability to manage, Weekend Warrior Safety Officer has authority to escalate the incident by:
    - Activating the Weekend Warrior Incident Command System, and/or
    - Calling for appropriate outside responders, which may include area law enforcement officers, fire department and EMS personnel. (When outside responders assume control of an emergency event, Weekend Warrior officials will provide a support role.)

  • The succession of events in an emergency is not predictable; therefore, published support and operational plans will serve only as a guide; modification may be necessary to meet emergency- specific requirements.

Phases of Emergency Management

There are three general phases of emergency management:

  1. Preparation: Includes developing readiness for emergencies based on education, organization and communications. A major responsibility is to maintain an ongoing threat assessment model to ensure effective preparation. Preparation is the process of risk reduction that involves the following elements:

    • Mitigation – Activities that can reduce the seriousness of an incident

    • Prevention – Activities that eliminate the risk of a hazard

  2. Response: Involves procedures for responding to emergency situations, assessing affected populations, treating the injured, and limiting damage to property. Pre-determined general and specific guidelines for responding to various incidents have been developed and are presented within this document.

  3. Recovery: Requires incident review, documentation, risk management, and plans for limiting liability that will expedite the return to normal.

Incident Command System (ICS) Emergency Management Team

The Weekend Warrior Incident Command System (ICS) Emergency Management Team consists of volunteer and staff representatives at Weekend Warrior whose positions are critical in responding to and recovering from an emergency. In the event an incident occurs that could have a significant impact on Weekend Warrior operations, the ICS Team will be activated. Procedures for activating the team are as follows:

  • Any member of the ICS Team can activate the team although typically the Chief of Event Safety, the Director of the Physical Plant, or the Vice President for Business Affairs would activate the team since their positions at Weekend Warrior allow them access to reports of critical incidents before other members of the team.

  • To activate the team, a RAVE notification (text, e-mail, and phone call) will be sent to all team members initiating the call-out. This message can be sent by the member activating the team or his or her designee.

  • Upon activation, the Incident Commander will designate a location based on the nature of the event and the ICS Team will report to the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) location at that time. Once a central location has been established an activation notification will be sent to the team.

  • It is the responsibility of team members to report without delay to the EOC. In the event a team member cannot immediately respond, that team member should contact either the ICS Team Commander, Public Information Officer(s), or the Department of Campus Safety to inform them.

  • Upon activation of the ICS Team, the Operations Chief and/or Chief of Campus Safety will immediately respond to open the EOC, or will dispatch a Campus Safety or Maintenance employee to unlock the EOC for team members.
    Once the ICS Team has reported to the EOC (or alternate designated location, if necessary) their immediate responsibility is to establish lines of communication, seek information on and monitor the incident, and immediately assist with the incident response. To expedite this process and in an effort to move seamlessly into the actual management of the incident, each team member must know his or her role and begin to immediately function in their role. A list of team members and a brief definition of each team member’s responsibilities is listed below. The team make-up and assignment of responsibilities is subject to change depending on the type of incident and whether or not all team members are able to respond. A change in responsibilities or the bringing in of additional personnel will be reviewed and approved by the incident commander.

ICS Team Roles

Incident Commander – Responsible for all aspects of incident management including development of incident objectives, management of all incident operations, and application of resources. The Incident Commander serves as the final decision-making authority.

Operations (Ops) Chief – Directs all actions to meet incident objectives as defined by the team and the incident commander.

Planning – Collects and displays incident information, including status of resources and overall status of the incident.

Logistics – Provides all resources, services, and support required by the incident.

Finance – Tracks incident-related costs, personnel records, requisitions, procurement, and other related administrative functions.

Public Information Officer – Serves as the conduit for information to and from internal and external stakeholders, including the media and other organizations seeking information about the incident or event. The person in this role is also responsible for keeping the ICS Team informed as to what is being reported about the incident. This responsibility is key in addressing public questions, managing rumors, and maintaining a focus on public relations issues.

Safety Officer – Monitors safety conditions and develops measures to assure the safety of all assigned personnel.

Liaison – Serves as the primary contact for supporting agencies assisting at the incident.

Executive Policy – The lead Weekend Warrior policy administrator and liaison responsible for monitoring the incident and providing guidance from a Weekend Warrior policy prospective.

Security Officer – The chief law enforcement for the Weekend Warrior responsible for liaising with related responding resources.



Emergency Management Procedures

Notification Channels
Weekend Warrior uses email, telephone, and text to transmit critical information to the community as quickly as possible. This will be accomplished by utilizing several communication options, including:

  • E-mail will be utilized to transmit information to all staff, volunteers, players, and vendors.

  • A telephone alert system will allow emergency messages to be placed in telephone voice mailboxes.

  • An instant text message will be sent to all staff, volunteers, and players who have opted for notifications 

Emergency Contact Numbers

Anderson County Sheriff (864) 260-4444

Emergency Procedures

A. Evacuation – Schematic layout of the Cross H Farm is posted in the tavern showing exit locations and evacuation paths.