Concept of Operations

In the event of an emergency at either the McGuire or Catawba Nuclear Power Stations notify, among others, the Gaston County Warning Point located in the Communications Center at the Gaston County Emergency Operations Center in Gastonia, NC. This notification will include the class of the emergency, other amplifying information, and recommendations for protective actions.

If the emergency poses a radiation threat to the surrounding community, the local government will immediately take appropriate actions to inform the residents in the threatened areas of the actions they should take for their own safety. The population may be alerted by fixed and mobile siren systems, public address announcements, door-to-door alerting, Emergency Alert System (EAS) radio and television announcements, and any other communication systems such as the National Weather Service (NWS) that are appropriate to the situation. View the Annex E State Plan EAS Procedures (PDF).

Local government and emergency service organizations must plan for and be prepared to direct all off-site emergency operations until assistance can be provided from the State Emergency Response Team (SERT).

The State assumes direction and control authority in accordance with the following:

At the request of the County or counties concerned SERT assumes direction and control authority effective at the specified date, time, and location
The State of Disaster has been appropriately declared, and SERT has been established and assumes direction and control authority effective at the specified date, time, and location. View State Plan Part 1 Section VIII Figure 3 (PDF) for message example.

The Gaston County Emergency Management Administrator will be in charge of planning, organizing, and coordinating the general response conducted by the Gaston County government.

Gaston County Sheriff

Coordinate all necessary notification and escort measures.
Provide necessary and timely support to the Gaston County Commissioners throughout the emergency.
When necessary, establish and maintain communications links between the County EOC and the site.
Assist with necessary traffic control measures in support of evacuation. Report traffic problems to the County EOC.
During incidents originating at the McGuire Nuclear Site, Coordinate Stanley and Mount Holly Police support in warning the public.
Direct contaminated persons and vehicles to designated decontamination stations and provide escorts, if required.
During the State of Disaster, declared by the Governor, provide the State Highway Patrol with local law enforcement resources and assistance.

Gaston County Emergency Services Fire Service, Rescue Squads, and Emergency Medical Services

Gaston Emergency Medical Services (GEMS)
- Provide specialized training programs for medical support personnel who may be called upon to care for off-site victims.
- Provide emergency communications capability for medical facilities and ambulances, and back-up communications for emergency workers.
- Coordinate emergency medical services at reception centers.
- Provide technical information on available emergency medical personnel.
- Provide radiation safety training to emergency medical personnel through existing emergency medical training programs.
- Assist in obtaining ambulances and rescue resources.
- Support decontamination operations at Reception Center and Emergency Worker Decon Station.
- Provide and/or support rescue operations occurring in Gaston County.
- When requested, deploy SMAT III to reception centers or shelters.
Gaston County Rescue Squad Captains
- Support emergency medical services throughout Gaston County and at shelters as needed.
- Assist in obtaining rescue resources.
- Assist the lead law enforcement agency as needed to protect lives and property.
Gaston County Fire Marshal
- Provide support and assistance to the Gaston County Police Department in the evacuation and the Sheriff Department in warning of people within the designated zones.
- Provide equipment and personnel for decontamination operations, including earthmoving and washdowns.
- Provide local area communications support.
- Provide vehicles for movement of equipment and personnel when directed by the County Emergency Management Administrator or EOC Manager.
- Coordinate the removal of radiologically contaminated material, specifically must know where it is going to go.
- Gaston County Fire Department Chiefs
- Provide support equipment and personnel for decontamination operations, including earthmoving and washing down as needed.
- Provide local area communications support.
- Support law enforcement in a warning and evacuating persons in threatened or contaminated zones as needed.

Chairman, Board of County Commissioners

Assume command of emergency response actions within the county in close coordination with other units of government

Gaston County Manager

Provide administrative support, supplies, and equipment to maintain operations within the Gaston County EOC.

Gaston County Social Services Director

Assist the Red Cross in shelter operations at the designated shelters.
Provide personnel for the operations of designated shelters.

Gaston County Communications Director

Coordinate communications within the EOC.
Maintain key warning and alert notification list and procedures.
Coordinate communications between personnel in the field and the County EOC.
Maintain a weather data terminal capable of obtaining current meteorological information and predictions in the vicinity of either the McGuire or Catawba Stations from the National Weather Service or another reliable weather service.
Provide support communications to the emergency workers in the field as needed.

Gaston County Solid Waste Supervisor County Engineer

Provide personnel and equipment to assist in the decontamination of equipment, roads, and structures.
Support transportation of needed supplies and equipment.
Support the removal of radiologically contaminated material.

Gaston County Cooperative Extension Agency

Assist the U.S. Department of Agriculture (County Food and Agricultural Council) in locating and reporting sources of uncontaminated feed for livestock in evacuated areas, if necessary.
Assist in assessing the impact of contamination of livestock, produce and processed food, as needed.
Provide an interface with the State Cooperative Extension Service representative to the Joint Information Center to assist in informing local producers and users of agricultural commodities of the results of the incident and the protective action recommendations made by the NC. Radiation Protection Section.
Perform a liaison function between local agricultural commodity producers and State and Federal agencies to serve as a clearing-house for information related to the emergency.
Provide personnel to act as guides for the Radiation Protection Section, and for other sampling teams as necessary.

Gaston County Superintendent of Education

Support shelter operations at the designated shelters.
Assist Gaston County American Red Cross and Social Services in shelter management.
Support efforts to locate clothing for evacuees.
Provide personnel for the operation of designated shelters.

Gaston County Health Department Director

Coordinate all public health functions.
Assist in the collection of agricultural milk samples for analysis by North Carolina Radiation Protection (NC RAD Protection).
Provide liaison with County EOC and provide technical assistance and consultation as needed.
Prior to the emergency, identify temporary storage sites for contaminated material.
Provide technical assistance and supervision to county and city water supply operations for any special or unusual treatments.
After consultation with the NC. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), order water supply sites to cease operations and close intake systems where deemed necessary.
Provide technical assistance for water supplies, such as individual water supplies, that are not the responsibility of DHHS.
Coordinate requests for emergency drinking water.
Maintain close coordination with the Chief of North Carolina Radiation Protection (NC RAD Protection).
Maintain and administer Potassium Iodide (KI) at the direction of the acting director of public health, for the general public and institutionalized individuals.

Gaston County Mental Health Director

Provide appropriate crisis counselors for citizens and emergency response personnel.
Support Gaston County American Red Cross, Social Services and Board of Education in shelter management.
Provide personnel and transportation of needed supplies and equipment for the designated shelters.

Gaston County Public Works Director

Provide support in obtaining 30 and 55 gallon drums to be used for packaging contaminated material.
Support the removal of radiologically contaminated material.
Support the restoration of contaminated highways and other transportation facilities.
Provide all necessary maintenance personnel, equipment, and operations.
Monitor and report road conditions to the County EOC.

Municipal Police Chief, Fire Chief & Maintenance Department Supervisor

Police Department Chief
- Support Gaston County Police and Sheriff Department as necessary.
- Provide traffic control, if needed, in support of evacuation and in the vicinity of shelters and report traffic problems to the Gaston County EOC.
- Support Sheriff in warning and County Police in evacuating persons in the designated zones.
Fire Chief
- Provide support equipment and personnel for decontamination operations, including earth moving and wash down.
- Provide local area communications.
- Support law enforcement in warning and evacuating persons in designated zones.
Maintenance Supervisor
- Provide support in obtaining 30 and 55 gallon drums to be used for packaging contaminated material.
- Support the removal of radiologically contaminated material.
- Support the restoration of contaminated highways and other transportation facilities.
- Provide all necessary maintenance personnel including equipment operations.
- Monitor and report road conditions to the County EOC.
- Provide all necessary equipment and supplies for decontamination operations.

Public Information Officer (PIO)

Release timely and accurate information to the public.
Maintain close coordination with the Duke Energy PIO, the NCEM PIO, and the Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners on public information releases. See also Paragraph IV.D., Public Education and Information.

Gaston County Red Cross Director

Direct operations at the designated shelters and coordinate the support of school officials and Social Services personnel.
Provide support in the following:

Emergency mass-care assistance.
Assistance to individual families.
Augmentation of Gaston County medical personnel, equipment, and blood products.

State & Federal Agencies in Support Role

North Carolina Department of Emergency Management (NCEM) Coordinate overall state effort to provide support necessary for response and recovery.
North Carolina State Highway Patrol (SHP). Provide law enforcement, security and traffic control.
National Weather Service, Greer Sc. Release emergency public service messages via National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather radio.
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- Support mass feeding for evacuees at the designated shelters and emergency response elements.
- Locate and report sources of uncontaminated feed for livestock.
- Restrict the sale, production, distribution and warehousing of livestock, produce and processed food products as needed.
- Support sampling and monitoring activities, including the areas accessible by fish.
- Close contaminated or suspected areas to the taking of fish.

Private Businesses, Industries & Electric Utility Companies

Duke Energy Company
- Develop emergency response plans to support both the McGuire and Catawba sites.
- Provide prompt and accurate reports of abnormal activity at the site as required by the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
- Provide incident assessment at the site.
- Provide protective action recommendations to state and local government.
- Provide equipment and training required to support state and local government response operations.
Radio Station WLNK FM is the Local Primary (LP-1) station providing for the release of emergency instructions and information via EAS and Emergency Special News Releases to the public on a 24-hour basis.

Gaston County Coordinating Instructions

Many tasks to be undertaken during the conduct of emergency operations will require the resources and the efforts of more than one agency of government.
Some tasks may require the efforts of various combinations of federal, state, and county agencies.
Some Gaston County agencies have the resources and capability to accomplish the same task.
Attempting to fix responsibility for a single task with one agency in a predetermined manner is impractical in that it would preclude the flexibility required to respond to situations that could (and probably would) change continually.
Gaston County department and agency heads, directors, and supervisors are responsible for preparing their organizations to accept the role of "lead agency" when directed by the appropriate authority.

Primary and Support Responsibility Summary

The basic governmental units and responsible individuals for Gaston County are listed in Figure 2.
Figure 3 lists the major functions associated with emergency operations, the major response organizations, and the level of responsibility for a function. It is not intended to be all inclusive, but rather to summarize the operational concepts employed. The ranking member of the unit of government participating in the special function is responsible for organizing, training, equipping, committing, and controlling personnel for emergency response.
The fact that a unit of government (or the individual in charge of the unit) is assigned primary responsibility for a specific function does not necessarily mean that the unit possesses the capability to perform all tasks included in the function. The term "primary responsibility" as used herein is intended to mean "responsible for carrying out the function or seeing that it is carried out". Personnel with primary and support responsibilities are to be employed in a cohesive manner under the direction of the individual in charge of the unit with primary responsibility.
The policy development and major decision-making elements of the command and control function are carried out as prescribed by the Chairman of the Gaston County Board of Commissioners or the designated representative.
The overall operational elements of the command and control function are the responsibility of the Chairman of the Gaston County Board of Commissioners. Where necessary the Chairman has delegated to the Gaston County Emergency Management Administrator the authority to act on his behalf in all matters related to and dealing with the operational aspects of command and control in the conduct of emergency response actions.
The Gaston County Emergency Management Administrator utilizes the County EOC staff to carry out the function of overall command and control and other functions for which the Chairman of the Gaston County Board of Commissioners is primarily (and secondarily) responsible.
The Gaston County Emergency Management Administrator or alternate is available and on call 24 hours a day.
Figure 3, lists major functions and major responsibility assignments. It is not intended to be all inclusive but rather to summarize the operational concept employed.