Earthquake Risk Transfer for Emergency services

The Emergency Services Sector is a community of millions of trained personnel along with the physical and cyber resources that enable them to provide a wide range of prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery services during both steady-state and incident management operations. The Emergency Services Sector includes geographically distributed facilities and equipment and highly skilled personnel that provide services in both paid and volunteer capacities. The sector is organized primarily at the Federal, State, local, tribal, and territorial levels of government, such as city police departments, county sheriff’s offices, Department of Defense police and fire departments, and town public works departments. The Emergency Services Sector also includes private sector resources such as industrial fire departments, private security organizations, and private Emergency Medical Services providers. As the Emergency Services Sector focuses on protecting other sectors and the public, unique challenges arise in addressing the security and resilience of the Emergency Services Sector as critical infrastructure. The incapacitation of any of the assets, networks, or systems in this sector, whether physical or virtual, could cause significant harm or loss of life, public health issues, and/or long-term economic loss.

Sector Components, Disciplines, and Capabilities

Components

The Emergency Services Sector consists of systems and networks composed of 1) physical, 2) cyber, and 3) human components.

Physical Component

The physical component includes the operations and storage facilities, specialized equipment, and vehicle fleets that enable personnel in each Emergency Services Sector discipline to perform critical services during steady-state and crisis operations. Specialized equipment and vehicles often require extensive personnel training and have distinct maintenance and storage requirements to ensure safe and effective operation when needed. Emergency communications equipment, such as land mobile radio systems are a substantial physical component in any agency.

Cyber Component

Emergency Services Sector operations are increasingly dependent on complex information technology and cyber systems, particularly as security technologies advance. Emergency operations communications, database management, biometric activities, telecommunications, and electronic security systems are conducted virtually and are vulnerable to cyber disruptions. The sector widely uses the Internet to provide information, alerts, warnings, and threats to ESS and critical infrastructure partners. Degradation of the systems that support these activities would significantly raise the overall risk to a facility and individual emergency responders and could impede effective operations.

Human Component

The sector’s most important component is the human assets—more than 2.5 million career and volunteer practitioners who serve in every community in the United States and about 40 million globally. These individuals contribute to the safety and security of the Nation by saving lives, preparing for and managing response operations, protecting residents and property, and ensuring public order in times of disaster.

Significant Emergency Services Sector Risks

Frequent and extreme natural disaster events will increase the response demands, which may drain sector personnel, assets, and capabilities. Natural disasters also threaten key services that enable ESS response. Consequently, reduce capital investment and grant funding constraining State and local resources.