Clay County has several plans in place to assist in the operation of agencies before, during and after emergencies/disasters. The following is a list of those plans. Most documents are considered closed to the public by South Dakota Codified law (SDCL 1-27-1.5). If a document is open, a link to the Clay County version of that plan will be provided in the description.
Clay County OEM Administrative Plan
The Emergency Management Administrative Plan is a description of administrative procedures for the County Office of Emergency Management. It provides guidance to the County Emergency Manager and information to elected and appointed officials throughout the county on the daily administration of County Emergency Management.
The plan is in effect during the mitigation and preparedness period. The County Local Emergency Operations Plan (LEOP) would take precedence when a state of emergency or disaster is determined to exist by the county officials.
Document may be viewed by following this link. 2023 County Administration Plan
Clay County Local Emergency Operations Plan (LEOP)
The Clay County Emergency Operations Plan establishes policy for County government agencies in their response to the threat of natural, technological or national security emergency/disaster situations. It documents the policies, concept of operations, organizational structures and specific responsibilities of state agencies in their response to provide for the safety and welfare of citizens. It also addresses the need for preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation activities to enhance the state’s overall capability to cope with potential hazards.
Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan (PDM)
Clay County is vulnerable to natural and manmade disasters that have the potential to impact the County’s infrastructure, the welfare of its residents, and the economy. Past disasters have inflicted costly damages upon Clay County. While these disasters cannot be eliminated, with mitigation planning, the response and recovery from these events can be improved and adverse impacts to individuals, businesses, and communities can be reduced. Hazard mitigation is the effort to make communities more resilient, and better able to anticipate, withstand, and recover from hazard events.
In order to be eligible for FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant programs, the Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (DMA 2000) requires that local governments have a FEMA- approved mitigation plan in place. In these plans, local jurisdictions must demonstrate that proposed mitigation projects assess the unique risks and capabilities of each community. They must be updated every five years to demonstrate that progress has been made toward meeting the community’s mitigation goals and to ensure that the plan continues to be an effective mitigation tool.
Clay County is currently going through the updating process. A schedule of the meetings can be found on the Public Meeting page and are open for public input.
The plan may be viewed by following this link. Clay County PDM Plan
Clay County HAZMAT Plan
A variety of hazardous materials are transported, stored, and used within Clay County on a daily basis. The hazardous materials include toxic chemicals, flammable liquids and gases, radioactive material. These hazardous materials are used in agriculture, industry, business, and other commercial and domestic applications.
When properly used, applied, controlled, and contained, the hazardous materials can be beneficial to our society. When improperly handled or accidentally released, they pose a threat to life, property, and the environment. A fast and efficient response is imperative to effectively manage and mitigate the effects of an incident. Inadequate response and recovery operations can be very costly in terms of lives, dollars, and environmental damage. Most hazardous materials incidents will require a multi-disciplinary approach with all responders participating in a well-coordinated effort.
Hazardous materials in Clay County is overseen by the Local Emergency Planning Committee. The plan is also currently in the updating process to include new federal requirements for oversight and response.
Clay County Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
The Continuity of Operations Plans prepares County Offices and services to continue completing their essential functions during any incident or emergency that may disrupt normal operations. Clay County is in the process of converting paper and electric plans over to a new software system purchased by the State of South Dakota. The State’s planner assist by coordinating planning efforts, hosting continuity training opportunities and managing the state continuity planning software. This collaboration will allow Clay County to continue completing their essential functions when any array of circumstances might otherwise interfere with normal operations.
Clay County Emergency Operations Plan (EOC)
The advantages to first responders, government, and the community of activating the Emergency Operations Center are numerous. Above all it allows incident command the ability to focus on incident needs and problem resolution. It provides a central location where government can provide inter-agency coordination, resources and executive decision making. Facilitates long‐term operation thereby improving continuity.
The purpose of the EOC during an event is supporting the Incident Commander (IC), and the Incident Command Post (ICP). This support may include, but not limited to, securing additional resources, coordinating response from outside agencies, managing information (collect, evaluate and share), reviewing legal, policy and financial issues, forecasting long‐term response and recovery needs, damage assessment, and anticipating indirect impacts of the event.
As the event concludes, and field operations are coming to an end, EOC personnel begin to focus on evaluating the overall scope of the disaster and structuring the recovery and reconstruction phase. In addition, the EOC may also function as an information gathering and dissemination point for all agencies and jurisdictions involved forming a Joint Information Center (JIC).
It is possible that the magnitude of an incident could render the initial ICP ineffective or require that multiple ICP’s be established in the field. In these cases, the IC may opt to utilize the EOC as the base of operations for coordination of the field ICP’s. The EOC staff would still serve its support role for the IC and field ICP’s, as well as possibly filling some roles of the Incident Command System (ICS), depending on staffing requirements.
Clay County Civil Disturbance
The Civil Disturbance Annex integrates local public safety and security capabilities and resources to support the full range of incident management activities prior to, during, and/or after a major incident involving civil disturbance.
Clay County Debris Management
Clay County recognizes that natural and human‑caused disasters have the potential to create debris that can disrupt the quality of life for its citizens, and complicate disaster response and recovery following such disasters. The City of Sioux Falls also recognizes that planning for such disasters can lessen the impact on the community, economy, and the environment. Therefore, the City of Sioux Falls has developed this plan to facilitate a rapid response and recovery to debris causing incidents.
Clay County Disaster Recovery Plan
The County Disaster Recovery Plan is structured much like the Local Emergency Operations Plan, but its purpose is to ensure the most efficient and effective coordination to assist in the recovery phase of any disaster.
Clay County Mass Fatality
The Clay County Mass Fatality Plan is designed to support operational direction during a mass fatality incident that is beyond the capability of the County / Coroner’s resources, by providing guidance to trained and qualified personnel, equipment and supplies as required to conduct a thorough investigation of the fatalities and identification of the deceased.
Clay County strives to be prepared at all times for the unfortunate event of a mass fatality incident which may or may not involve a weapon of mass destruction (biologic, chemical, or nuclear) in association with a terrorist event. Clay County will coordinate efforts with various local, state and federal agencies to be prepared for a mass fatality incident.
Clay County Disaster Mental Health Plan (MH)
Historically, mental health (MH) services have been a neglected part of disaster response planning and implementation. Recently, efforts have been made to remedy this oversight. It is now known that victims and disaster responders benefit from MH services both during and after a disaster.
In most cases after a disaster, symptoms will be transient and an individual will return to his or her previous level of functioning within a few weeks. Some normal reactions include: recurring dreams or nightmares, unintentional thoughts about the disaster, memory difficulties, fatigue, flashbacks related to the experience, survivor guilt, questioning spirituality, and expressing strong emotion. These stress reactions are most often ordinary reactions to extraordinary events. Educating people about such reactions can serve to reduce distress and can help people to cope effectively.