"The firefighters," said The Ottawa Citizen, "had no idea what was burning" when they arrived at the plant that manufactured floral foam. First responders depend on accurate information -- much of it contained in essential records -- to protect their health and lives during disaster response.
Essential records can be paper or electronic, but they fall into five broad categories:
1. Essential Records Necessary for Emergency Response
Whether an emergency involves a single structure or regionwide destruction, first responders depend on critical records to facilitate their response. Maps, building plans, infrastructure and utilities plans may be needed to direct the response and determine the safety of affected structures. Material Safety Data Sheets will alert responders to potential hazards and required treatments in response to exposure. In wider emergencies, government agencies and businesses will need copies of emergency plans, contact information and even delegations of authority to facilitate the response. All of these are essential records.
2. Essential Records That Protect the Health, Safety, Property and Rights of Residents
Medical records are an obvious example of essential records that protect the health and safety of a community, but records protect in other ways that are less obvious. Almost every legal right enjoyed by a citizen is confirmed by some record: Proof of citizenship -- bringing with it the right to vote and all constitutional rights -- depends on birth records, marriage certificates or naturalization papers. Fair trials depend on court records. And property ownership can only be established with deeds and mortgages. All of these are essential records that must be protected during a disaster.
3. Essential Records Necessary to Resume or Continue Operations
During a disaster, government agencies and businesses can only continue operations if they can access paper or electronic records. As the disaster stretches on (after a hurricane, for example) the need for more and more records grows. Contracts and leases, payroll records and accounts receivable are just some of the essential records necessary for continuity of operations.
4. Essential Records That Would Require Massive Resources to Reconstruct
If an emergency manager uses GIS to maneuver in disaster areas, he or she is using a record that probably took countless hours to create. Such systems are complex and would require tremendous resources to re-create, resources that might be beyond the capacity of many organizations or government agencies. That makes such a record an essential record, one that must be protected during disasters.
5. Essential Records to Restore Order and Community After a Disaster
A disaster -- particularly a widespread one -- does not end when the last fire has been extinguished or all the water drained. Families and communities can only fully recover if their essential historical records have been preserved. Sadly responders sometimes fail to recognize the importance of such records in their understandable haste to mitigate the immediate effects of the disaster. Whenever possible, though, immediate response should protect the records that will become invaluable during long term recovery.
Essential Records Face Many Threats
Localized disasters can threaten a single building and the essential records it contains. A broken water pipe in the courthouse might threaten a small number of property or court records, while a fire might destroy a century's worth of such records. Larger-scale disasters, such as tornadoes and earthquakes, present a greater danger to essential records, while major disasters, such as hurricanes, floods or terrorist attacks can devastate a wider area. Regional disasters present an additional threat: Even if essential records have been backed up, a regional disaster can destroy both the original and the copy unless steps have been taken to separate them adequately.
Emergency Managers Should Care About Essential Records for Many Reasons:
1. You produce essential records.
Every emergency manager should identify and protect the records needed to respond to an emergency and to continue operations for the duration of the emergency.
2. Other agencies produce essential records.
Most emergency management agencies are small and depend on other agencies to provide critical support during crises. Those agencies produce essential records that they will need when the disaster strikes. Emergency managers should urge their partners to identify and protect their essential records.
3. Essential records held by others may protect your safety.
Like Capt. Stahley, emergency responders often encounter dangerous situations that might be lessened through adequate record-keeping. Emergency managers who know they will likely encounter industrial disasters or other emergencies involving hazardous chemicals or waste can lessen their danger by urging such facilities to pay attention to their own essential records.
4. First responders may encounter damaged essential records.
After Hurricane Katrina, a team of archivists traveled to the Gulf Coast to assess damage to government facilities and cultural institutions. At a county courthouse, they spoke to members of the National Guard who had been sent to begin "rescuing" the property records damaged by water. Their confused commander said that, during the course of that day, he had been instructed in how to save the records by three different people who had described three different techniques (ranging from fanning the pages open to cutting the bindings off). Disasters, particularly widespread ones, often scatter the people who know which records are essential and how to rescue them. First responders should be aware that courthouses, city halls, museums, historical societies and many other public facilities may hold records of vital importance to the community they serve. Responders should never assume that damaged records cannot be recovered, even when the records look hopeless. Protecting records until they can be assessed by a professional is the best way to ensure that essential records survive.
What Should You Do?
1. "Put your own mask on first."
Airline safety announcements warn us to "put your own mask on first" if the oxygen mask drops from the ceiling. It is difficult to help other agencies if your own agency's essential records have not been identified and protected. Survey your own records and determine which are most essential to your response and continuity of operations. Duplicate them and send them far enough away from the originals -- 100 miles or more -- to protect them in the event of a widespread disaster.
2. Help others prioritize.
Raise awareness about essential records among your partner agencies and the community you serve. Their preparedness will help you respond more effectively. Raising awareness among residents in your community can also make your job easier. If families protect their own essential records -- birth certificates, property deeds, identity records and such -- they will be better prepared to evacuate and remain outside the disaster zone for the duration of the crisis.
3. Be aware of essential records you may encounter.
During any disaster, the first priority is protecting the life and safety of residents, but emergency managers who are aware that they may encounter essential records will be prepared to protect the long-term recovery prospects of the affected area. Once the initial crisis passes, use your influence to protect records -- even heavily damaged ones -- until professionals can assess them.
Where to Get Help
Your state archivist and records manager is a good source of information and assistance. Visit the Council of State Archivists to find contact information for your state archives and records management agency. National organizations, such as Heritage Preservation, the National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators and ARMA International provide assistance as well. During 2009 and 2010, the Council of State Archivists, in cooperation with FEMA, will conduct a national Intergovernmental Preparedness for Essential Records project to provide training to state and local governments to identify and protect essential records.
