David Alexander provides a concise yet comprehensive and systematic primer on how to prepare for a disaster. The book introduces the methods, procedures, protocols and strategies of emergency planning.

This user-friendly book includes listings for more than 300 websites. It helps users focus their emergency planning efforts and find the critical information they need on the Internet and explains how to use these resources to stay prepared and informed in a world increasingly vulnerable to the effects of disaster. Special features include a tour of Internet sites for emergency management, a discussion of practical applications for the Internet, and a guide for deciding when to use an emergency web site to deal with a disaster.

In order for a community to be truly prepared to respond to any type of emergency, it must develop effective emergency planning. Emergency Planning guides readers through the steps of developing these plans, offering a number of strategies that will help ensure success. It delves into the patterns of human disaster behavior, social psychology, and communication as well as the basics of generic protective actions, planning concepts, implementation, and action.

This "how to" guide shows small to mid-sized local governments, whether in urban or regional settings, how to develop comprehensive emergency management plans with minimal expenditure of resources. Its modular, step-by-step approach also makes it an effective guide for non-experts and those interested in self-study. The book covers both preparedness planning and actual emergency management and includes these helpful features: Uses a modular approach to developing written plans, starting with the Preparedness Plan at the federal, provincial/state levels. At its core is the Emergency Management Plan, which is essentially the establishment and operation of the Emergency Operations Center that is central to any emergency. Instructions also cover other common plans: 1) Emergency Social Services 2) Emergency Public Information 3) Emergency Telecommunications 4) Evacuation 5) Hazard-Specific 6) Mutual Aid Agreements Takes novice emergency planners step-by-step through the four complete processes of mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery for natural and human-made disasters. Gives tips for a staff training matrix and for developing a timetable of graduated exercises to test the written plan. Includes checklists, summaries, plan outlines, glossary, appendices that list online resources, and suggestions for career and professional development.

Topics covered include federal requirements for development of emergency action plans, hazard and risk management assessment, generic emergency action plan, preservation of records, Internet resources for disaster planning.

Fire, flood, earthquake, vandalism, a terrorist attack--the issues of safety measures, emergency response, and disaster recovery have now become an important part of the planning strategies for most organizations. For the information organization, such as a library, archives, or record center, this responsibility has taken on new dimensions with the proliferation of various forms of electronic media. The authors take the approach that disaster recovery planning must touch every department of an organization and that emergency response must be a carefully mapped strategy. This broad-based approach to "integrated disaster planning" explains each phase of disaster planning, with chapters covering prevention planning, protection planning, preparedness planning, response planning, and recovery planning. The authors consider collections, records, facilities, and systems and include a chapter on post-disaster planning as well. The authors also cover federal and local assistance programs and list other sources for financial assistance. Although the main thrust of the book is the protection of documents, human safety in case of disaster is stressed explicitly and implicitly throughout. Indispensible for every information organization.