DomPrep.com’s John F. Morton and Martin Masiuk met with Retired Navy Rear Adm. Marsha J. Evans in June 2005 at the American Red Cross Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Admiral Evans detailed the Red Cross organizational linkages with DHS and State/Local EOCs for response planning. She also outlined a new initiative for community-based preparedness training and the mechanisms through which the American Red Cross (ARC) is developing the mass-care support function in local response planning.
Admiral Evans highlights the significance of this September’s National Preparedness Month as illustrative of the American Red Cross (ARC) partnership with DHS to develop preparedness at all levels. She also speaks of the NGO role in the development of HSPD-8 and the National Preparedness Goal.
Admiral Evans stresses the Red Cross role as a primary agency for mass care under Emergency Support Function 6 (ESF #6) – Mass Care, Housing, and Human Services – in the National Response Plan. She also outlines the linkages between the Red Cross and its Disaster Operations Center at ARC Headquarters and the Homeland Security Operations Center (HSOC) at DHS as well the linkages to state and local EOCs.
Admiral Evans discusses the Red Cross NGO training contract with Pearson Performance Solutions. She comments on Red Cross participation in the TOPOFF exercises as well as the ARC’s embrace of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) and how it will facilitate further collaboration between Red Cross and first responders.
Admiral Evans predicts that NGOs will increasingly take part in the response planning process. Given its lead role for mass care, the Red Cross now has over 80 formal memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with other NGOs as well as business partners. Admiral Evans talks of the development of the Coordinated Assistance Network (CAN) and, under the NRP’s Catastrophic Incident Annex/Supplement (CIA/S), the Red Cross development of the Mass Care Catastrophic Planning Initiative.
