National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 1
National Levee Safety Program
Levee Emergency Action Plan Template
DISCUSSION DRAFT
Introduction
One of the goals of the National Levee Safety Program is to develop a set of voluntary guidelines that a
wide range of people with levee responsibilities can implement to ensure reliable levees.
To assist with implementing these National Levee Safety Guidelines, the Levee Management Guide is
being developed with input from levee owners and operators from across the United States to
consolidate practical information for levee management in one location and, in some circumstances,
provide additional detail on procedures and tools to assist in the safe operation and maintenance of
levee system infrastructure. One of the tools being developed to accompany the Levee Management
Guide is a Levee Emergency Action Plan Template.
A well-developed Emergency Action Plan, or EAP, identifies potential emergency conditions and specific
actions to take for each condition, including coordinating with appropriate agencies and communicating
with members of the affected community. An Emergency Action Plan, when put into practice, can help
reduce the overall impacts of an emergency to people, property, and infrastructure.
This template is intended to help users develop an Emergency Action Plan specific to their levee. The
template steps through potential emergency conditions at a levee and specific actions to minimize loss
of life and property damage. The template can be customized by inserting levee-specific information
into the relevant portions of the template and omitting portions that are not applicable.
This template can be used for most levees. The template addresses common levee features, conditions,
and issues that need to be addressed in an Emergency Action Plan. However, all levees are unique, and
it is unlikely that this template will address every unique aspect of all levees. Thus, users of the template
should ensure that aspects of their levee are appropriately accounted for in their Emergency Action
Plan.
An Emergency Action Plan will not be effective unless it is developed, practiced, and implemented in
close coordination with local emergency management authorities. In general, state and local emergency
management authorities will have coordinating plans in place to address local emergency operations
and/or warnings and evacuations. The levee’s Emergency Action Plan must work in coordination with
these larger plans.
National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 2
1 Emergency Action Plan Overview ............................................................................................................
1.1 Purpose ...........................................................................................................................................
1.2 Inundation Maps.............................................................................................................................
1.3 Access to the Levee ........................................................................................................................
1.4 Levee Location ................................................................................................................................
1.5 Description of Levee .......................................................................................................................
2 Flood Response Process ...........................................................................................................................
2.1 Monitor ...........................................................................................................................................
2.1.1 Flood Source Monitoring ...................................................................................................
2.1.2 Levee System Monitoring ..................................................................................................
2.2 Determine Incident Level ...............................................................................................................
2.3 Communicate..................................................................................................................................
2.3.1 Communication Roles and Responsibilities .......................................................................
2.3.2 Emergency Communication During Flood Events .............................................................
2.3.3 Routine Communication During Flood Events ..................................................................
2.3.4 Notification Chart and Communication Lists .....................................................................
2.4 Implement Flood Fight Activities ....................................................................................................
2.5 Evacuate .........................................................................................................................................
2.5.1 Evacuation Process ............................................................................................................
2.5.2 Evacuation Background Information .................................................................................
2.6 Termination and Follow-up ............................................................................................................
3 Roles and Responsibilities ........................................................................................................................
3.1 <Levee Owner> ...............................................................................................................................
3.1.1 General Responsibility of the <Levee Owner> ..................................................................
3.1.2 Roles of <Levee Owner> Personnel ...................................................................................
3.2 County Emergency Management Agencies ....................................................................................
3.3 State Emergency Management Agencies .......................................................................................
3.4 <Local Jurisdictions or Municipalities> ...........................................................................................
Sample Table of Contents:
Levee Emergency Action Plan
National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 3
3.5 Local Law Enforcement ...................................................................................................................
4 Preparedness ............................................................................................................................................
4.1 Materials and Equipment ...............................................................................................................
4.2 Security ...........................................................................................................................................
4.3 Response during Non-Business Hours and Adverse Weather ........................................................
4.4 Power and Alternative Sources of Power .......................................................................................
4.5 Communication Alternatives ..........................................................................................................
4.5.1 Normal Conditions .............................................................................................................
4.5.2 Back-up and Emergency Communications ........................................................................
4.6 Public Awareness ............................................................................................................................
4.7 Emergency Action Plan Coordination and Updates .......................................................................
4.8 Emergency Training and Exercising ................................................................................................
List of Figures
Figure 1 - Flood Response Process Overview
Figure 2 - Routine Notification Chart
Figure 3 - Emergency Notification Chart
List of Appendices
Appendix A – Internal Contact Lists
Appendix B – External Contact Lists
Appendix C – Levee System Non-Emergency Operation and Maintenance During a Flood Event
Appendix D – Required and On-Hand Supplies Inventory
Appendix E – Flood Fight Monitoring Points
Appendix F – Typical Flood Fight Actions
Appendix G – Emergency and Routine Pre-Scripted Messages
Appendix H – Primary Evacuation Routes
Appendix I – Levee Access Map
Appendix J – Emergency Action Plan Distribution
Appendix K – Emergency Action Plan Updates
Appendix L – Emergency Action Plan Exercises
Appendix M – Inundation Maps
National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 4
Sample Emergency Action Plan Template Section #2.5
Instructions Only and Instructions with Fill in the Blank
DISCUSSION DRAFT
2.5 Evacuate
Purpose of Section: Describe the evacuation notification process for your leveed area and your role in
that process. Having a pre-planned and documented evacuation decision-making and notification
process can eliminate costly delays during a flood emergency.
2.5.1 Evacuation Process
INSTRUCTIONS
Due to the high variability in levee owner roles and responsibilities regarding evacuation, fill in the
blank language is not able to capture the wide range of write-ups that will be required. Please
complete this section with original text.
Complete the Evacuation Process section with a description of the evacuation notification process for
your leveed area and your role in that process.
Identify the entity that has the authority to issue evacuation notices and how you will coordinate with
them.
• If your organization is responsible for issuing evacuation notices, describe the decision making
and communication process used to determine if an evacuation notice is warranted and to
communicate that notice to the impacted public.
• If the authority to issue evacuation notices lies with another entity, describe how your
organization will make decisions about recommending evacuations and communicate those
decisions with those with the authority to act.
2.5.2 Evacuation Background Information
INSTRUCTIONS
Provide information about the leveed area that will impact the timing and execution of an evacuation.
Include all pertinent information for your system that the authority for making evacuation decisions
should be aware of.
Customize this section to your levee by inserting appropriate information in place of the red text,
deleting text that does not apply to your levee, and adding additional sentences or paragraphs as
needed. See Chapter 10 of the National Levee Safety Guidelines.
National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 5
The <Levee Name> leveed area encompasses <#> acres and includes <list municipalities>. There are <#>
people living and working within the leveed area, <#> structures, and <#> acres of agricultural land.
Critical infrastructure within the leveed area includes <list hospitals, schools, major highways, and other
critical infrastructure within the leveed area>.
Should the <Levee Name> be overtopped or breached, the entire leveed area would be inundated
within <# days/hours>. Maximum flood depths of <#> feet and greater could be experienced in the
<location with greatest flood depths>. Flood waters are anticipated to reach population centers within
<# hours/days>.
Jurisdictions within the leveed area <maintain/do not maintain> effective relationships and
communications with the <local emergency management agency>. They <have/do not have> an
effective flood warning system. Leveed area inhabitants are generally <aware/unaware> of their flood
risk and of the importance of monitoring emergency notifications and evacuation notifications,
<increasing/decreasing> the likelihood of an effective evacuation if a breach were to occur.
Primary evacuation routes out of the leveed area to high ground are shown in Appendix <XX>.
National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 6
Sample Emergency Action Plan Template Section #2.5
Instructions with Example Language
DISCUSSION DRAFT
2.5 Evacuate
Purpose of Section: Describe the evacuation notification process for your leveed area and your role in
that process. Having a pre-planned and documented evacuation decision-making and notification
process can eliminate costly delays during a flood emergency.
INSTRUCTIONS
The language below is example language, intended to provide an example of what this section might
look like for a specific, fictional levee system.
Replace the example language in the Evacuation Process section with a description of the evacuation
notification process and responsibilities for the leveed area. If your organization is responsible for
issuing evacuation orders, the process for your leveed area may differ significantly from the example
process described below.
In the Evacuation Background Information section, include information about the leveed area that
will impact the timing and execution of an evacuation. Include all pertinent information for your
system that the evacuation decision-making authority should be aware of.
2.5.1 Evacuation Process
The River County Emergency Management Agency is responsible for issuing evacuation notices for the
Busy Town leveed area. The River County Emergency Management Agency depends on timely and
accurate information about the levee in order to make effective evacuation decisions.
The Head of the Board of the River County Levee District is responsible for issuing a recommendation
that an evacuation notice be issued for the Busy Town Leveed Area. The decision to issue an evacuation
recommendation will be made based upon an evaluation of current and predicted levee performance by
the River County Head of Maintenance. Evacuation recommendations are communicated directly to the
River County Emergency Management Agency, Director of Flood Response. Contact information is
provided in Appendix B.
Immediately upon the River County Emergency Management Agency issuing an evacuation notice, Busy
Town will implement their 911 texting service to inform the impacted public. Busy Town police, fire, and
emergency responders will assist with evacuation notifications and with executing the evacuation in
accordance with the Busy Town Emergency Action Plan.
National Levee Safety Program: EAP Template Discussion Draft 7
2.5.2 Evacuation Background Information
The Busy Town leveed area encompasses 8,750 acres and surrounds the eastern half of Busy Town,
including 220 residences, the Busy Town Industrial Park, and the Mark Twain Recreational Area.
There are about 1,000 people living in the leveed area and 2,600 people that work at the industrial park.
The levee provides flood risk reduction for 220 homes, 13 industrial structures, and 340 acres of park
land. Critical infrastructure within the leveed area includes the Busy Town wastewater treatment
facility.
Should the Busy Town Levee be overtopped or breached, the entire leveed area would be inundated
within 6 hours. Maximum flood depths of 15 feet and greater could be experienced in the Industrial
Area north of Main Street and west of Star Ridge Road. The residential area would experience flood
depths between 1 and 4 feet.
The Busy Town Mayor and the Busy Town Levee District maintain effective relationships and
communications with the River County Emergency Management Agency. Busy Town has an effective
flood warning system and 911 text messaging system. The people that live and work in the leveed area
are generally aware of their flood risk and of the importance of monitoring emergency notifications and
evacuation notifications, increasing the likelihood of an effective evacuation if a breach were to occur.
People that frequent Mark Twain Recreational Area may not be aware of the flood risk, making it less
likely they will receive emergency warnings and evacuate should a sudden breach occur.
