Technical Manual: Conduits through Embankment Dams (FEMA 484)

Chapter 11—Appropriate Emergency Actions3. Responsibilities.—The responsibility for emergency-action-related tasks should beassigned during the development of the plan. Embankment dam owners areresponsible for developing, maintaining and implementing the EAP. State andlocal emergency management officials having statutory obligation areresponsible for the warning and evacuation of the general public within theaffected areas. The EAP should clearly specify the embankment dam owner’sresponsibilities, to ensure effective, timely action is taken should an emergencyoccur at the dam. The EAP must be site specific, because all embankmentdams are different.4. Preparedness.—Preparedness actions are taken to mitigate or alleviate the effectsof an embankment dam failure or operational reservoir release and to facilitatethe appropriate response to emergencies. This section of the EAP identifiesactions to be taken before and/or during any emergency.5. Inundation maps.—Inundation maps should delineate the areas that would beflooded as a result of a embankment dam failure for normal and floodconditions or uncontrolled release. Inundation maps are used by both theembankment dam owner and emergency management officials to facilitatetimely notification and evacuation of areas affected by an embankment damfailure or flooding. These maps greatly facilitate notification, by graphicallydisplaying flooded areas and showing travel times for wave fronts and floodpeaks at critical locations. These maps should be used in advance to developwarning and evacuation plans, but should only be used for guidance.6. Appendices.—The appendices contain information that supports andsupplements the material used in the development and maintenance of theEAP.Once the EAP has been developed, approved and distributed to the properauthorities, the plan still needs to be properly maintained and exercised. Withoutperiodic maintenance, the EAP will become outdated, lose its effectiveness, and nolonger be useable. If the plan is not exercised (validated), those involved in itsimplementation may not be aware of their roles and responsibilities, particularly ifemergency response personnel change over time. If the plan is not updatedperiodically, the information contained in it may become outdated, incorrect, anduseless.An EAP should be developed for site-specific conditions and to the requirements ofthe agency/organization that owns or regulates the use of the specific embankmentdam. The intent of this document is not to provide every detail necessary to developan effective and useful EAP. The requirements of an EAP vary from State/federalagencies as to the format, level of detail, and information presented in the EAP. Forfurther guidance on developing an effective EAP, see the references from the263