Critical Incident Solutions - Homeland Defense Is Our Only Mission

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State/County/City Clients

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State of Ohio
Emergency Management Agency / Department of Health
Columbus, Ohio

State Homeland Security Assessment Program

Governor’s Top Officials Exercise and Strategic National Stockpile Table-Top Exercise

State of Florida
Department of Health
Tallahassee, Florida

Critical Incident Solutions recently completed Homeland Security Comprehensive Assessment Model (HLS-CAM) Vulnerability Assessments on (48) major hospitals throughout the State of Florida. These reports were part of a DHS grant and will result in the protection of this critical infrastructure.

Vulnerability Assessments (48 hospitals over the entire State)
State of Florida
Department of Health
Tallahassee, Florida

Safety & Vulnerability Assessments (MQA offices for the entire State)

Office of the Commissioner - Major League Baseball
New York, New York

This project involved a myriad of physical and operational security services for the Office of the Commissioner of Major League Baseball (MLB). Our firm conducted detailed threat and vulnerability assessments of several facilities for MLB. Additionally, our team reviewed existing Emergency Response Plans (ERPs), Continuity of Business (COB) plans, and Continuity of Operations Plans (COOPs). Upon completion of the on-site assessment, our personnel developed a detailed report summarizing observations and recommendations.

Risk, Readiness, Response, and Recovery (R4) Assessments

City of Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Critical Incident Solutions performed water systems vulnerability analyses for this large water supplier in Indiana.

The vulnerability analysis included: meetings with key water systems staff, review and analysis of system plans, and inspection of the system facilities including the control area. Based on the findings of our interviews, plan reviews, and system inspections, a summary report was prepared documenting our observations regarding the susceptibility of the system to biological, chemical, or physical attack. The summary report also presented recommendations to improve specific facilities and changes to various operational and maintenance practices.

Threat and Vulnerability Assessments

Franklin County
Franklin County, Ohio

Critical Incident Solutions performed water systems vulnerability assessments on all aspects of the public water supply system for this water supplier in the state of Ohio, including reservoirs, rivers, water supply lines, holding tanks, pumping systems, chemical storage tanks, underground storage systems, and water towers. A critical aspect of this project was the development and submission of the Adversary Sequence Diagrams highlighting areas of concern and recommendations for improvement.

Threat and Vulnerability Assessments
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Miami-Dade County
Office of Emergency Management
Miami, Florida

Table-Top Exercises (HSSEP) Multiple “All Hazards” Scenarios

Super Bowl 2007 Table-Top HSEEP Exercise

COOP Development & Training

Alachua County
University of Florida
Office of Emergency Management
Gainesville, Florida

NIMS Training

COOP Development & Training

Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)

Functional/Full Scale Exercise (HSEEP)

Polk County
Office of Emergency Management
Bartow, Florida

Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)

CEMP, COOP and Terrorism Response Plan Review

State of Florida
Department of Health, Office of Emergency Operation
Tallahassee, FL

Critical Incident Solutions provided the Department of Health with analysis of their current Continuity of Operations Plans. The review process included consideration of core concepts and operational procedures needed to maintain viable Emergency Operations Plans, Day-to-Day Operations and Continuity of Operations. Personnel roles and responsibilities, chain of command, span of control, unity of command and other NIMS-ICS principles were part of these considerations. The plan review process included a focus on worst case scenarios such as a natural disaster (hurricane) impacting the state during a pandemic outbreak. .

COOP Analysis and Development

Hamilton County / City of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio

Critical Incident Solutions is providing program management functions for the city of Cincinnati and Hamilton County. These services include assisting in the development of a Homeland Security Strategy for both the city and the county. This includes budgeting over 12 million dollars in this request.

Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI)

General Services Administration (GSA)
Washington, D.C. (currently ongoing):

CIS is currently reviewing GSA COOP plans and documentation in order to identify opportunities for improvement using federal guidelines and industry best practices. Based on this analysis, recommendations, templates and checklists will be provided to the client to better prepare agency personnel to react to an emergency by addressing issues such as staffing, COOP plan viability and resource acquisition prior to the occurrence of any emergency that could impact the agency and disrupt its mission essential functions.

CIS will also provide training to key leaders and mission critical personnel on how to use the improved COOP plan and practical aspects of maintaining a high degree of readiness to be able to handle any emergency. A functional exercise will also be conducted in order to assist in the evaluation of current plans and capabilities of agency personnel to continue essential functions during a crisis. The exercise will be followed up with a hot-wash evaluation and professional assessment including proposed modifications to the COOP plan based on lessons learned.

Florida Department of Health
Tallahassee, Florida (April 2007):

Critical Incident Solutions recently provided assistance to the State of Florida by conducting reviews of existing Continuity of Operations Plans and making appropriate recommendations. This effort included review of several key division/office plans as well as overall department plans. A Gap Analysis was conducted to compare existing plans with each other for consistency against a set of established standards. These standards included the Florida Division of Emergency Management COOP Implementation Guidance, FEMA Federal Preparedness Circular 65 and industry best practices. The review process included consideration of core concepts and operational procedures needed to maintain viable Emergency Operations Plans, Day-to-Day Operations and Continuity of Operations. Personnel roles and responsibilities, chain of command, span of control, unity of command and other NIMS-ICS principles were part of these considerations. The plan review process included a focus on worst case scenarios such as a natural disaster (hurricane) impacting the state during a pandemic outbreak. CIS provided a very thorough and beneficial analysis of existing department and division/office plans. The company also provided comprehensive final reports which highlighted specific planning areas in need of attention and recommendations for follow up actions. CIS program managers and consultants maintained the highest level of professionalism and were quick to respond to the client's needs throughout the contract period.

State of Florida
(Miami-Dade County, Alachua County, FIU):

CIS has trained multiple clients in understanding COOP core concepts and assisted numerous government and private agencies in developing their Continuity of Operations Plan. Our company has recently worked with Miami-Dade and Alachua counties in Florida as well as Florida International University (FIU). We have also assisted clients in evaluating their COOP by conducting practical exercises, which is essential to demonstrating, assessing and improving an agency's capabilities in plan execution.

Critical Incident Solutions conducted training at a Key Leader Seminar for Florida International University administrative staff and emergency response team leaders at a 2-day retreat. This training included key concepts and practical applications involving threat assessments, vulnerability surveys, emergency response operations, continuity of operations planning and the Incident Command System. CIS subsequently assisted the FIU Police Department in developing a robust COOP to be used for managing large scale incidents affecting the campus such as category 2 - 5 hurricanes and acts of terrorism.

CIS has recently trained 25 departments in COOP development and 28 departments in COOP Table-Top Exercises involving acts of terrorism and natural disasters in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and 8 departments in both COOP development as well as Table-Top and Functional/Full Scale Exercises involving terrorist attacks on a major special event and emergency services facilities in Alachua County, Florida.

Critical Incident Solutions was contracted by Miami-Dade County to develop Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) training curriculum, deliver multiple COOP training courses to planning coordinators within 25 different departments which did not have a current plan, and review initial draft plans to include making recommendations for COOP improvement.

CIS was also contracted to evaluate the plans of 28 other departments within the county which already had plans in place through a series of 5 Table Top Exercises that addressed vital areas of contingency planning to include communications, evacuation procedures, personnel accountability, water and food supply, transportation, fuel supply, electrical power generation, information technology and data recovery, housing and childcare, security control and hazard mitigation, emergency police/fire/medical services, banking and financial services, and government resources.

COOP course development was conducted by CIS staff members who are certified, experienced and well versed on contingency planning. CIS staff members utilized federal guidelines (Federal Preparedness Circular (FPC)-65), state guidelines [(COOP Elements of Viability (FDEM)], and industry best-practices to formulate the training curriculum to meet the specific needs of Miami-Dade County. Core concepts which form a viable COOP and were discussed in detail during the training courses included:

Plans & Procedures
Mission Essential Functions
Delegation of Authority
Orders of Succession
Alternate Facilities
Interoperable Communications
Vital Records, Files, and Databases
Human Capital
Security
Devolution
Reconstitution
Testing, Training, and Exercising
Program Management

Course development also included the creation of a multi-media presentation in order to reinforce teaching points. An interactive game was also developed and utilized to engage participants and promote a high level of interest in course materials. This teaching method was well received and provided an enjoyable learning environment for everyone in attendance. After attending the training sessions, participating agency representatives drafted a COOP for their respective departments. CIS staff reviewed these draft plans and provided written recommendations for plan improvement based on federal and state guidelines as well as industry best practices. Final plans were then submitted by 25 departments to Miami-Dade County in order to comply with state requirements that all essential agencies maintain a viable COOP.

CIS staff also developed training materials for a series of 5 Table Top Exercises to evaluate the plans of 28 other departments within the county which already had a COOP in place. CIS staff worked with department representatives to develop exercise objectives and customized scenarios that would challenge participants while they responded to a catastrophic event to maintain essential functions within their departments despite disruptions, damage and major impact upon key facilities, operations and personnel. CIS produced written exercise manuals and created multi-media presentations in order to deliver realistic training situations for participants at each Table Top Exercise. CIS staff provided a written After Action Report for each Table Top Exercise which included key lessons learned and recommendations on how each agency could improve their Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP).

Critical Incident Solutions designed, scripted, and conducted a large Table-Top Exercise for 8 major agencies/organizations in Alachua County including the University of Florida, which involved multiple acts of terrorism across the nation affecting multiple universities. Our company also conducted a functional exercise for all major emergency response agencies/organizations including the University of Florida. The scenario involved terrorists detonating a large vehicle bomb (LVB) at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at the University of Florida during a Gators Football Game. The blast took out the Stadium Command Post and Command Staff including University of Florida Police Officials as well as several thousand spectators. The Alachua County Sheriff's Mobile Command Vehicle was also destroyed.

Additionally, terrorists detonated explosive devices at the Alachua County Combined Communications Center which houses 911 Dispatch and Emergency Management Agency's EOC (Emergency Operations Center). Explosive devices were also detonated at the Alachua County Sheriff's Office, Gainesville Police Department, Alachua County Fire Rescue and Gainesville Fire Rescue. Terrorists also targeted critical infrastructure by taking out key electrical sub-stations, cell towers and other communications facilities causing widespread power and communication outages.

These events required that the Incident Command Post be relocated from the stadium to the University of Florida Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in order to manage the crisis response in the field. Alachua County emergency services departments had to activate their Continuity of Operations Plans (COOP) in order to continue their essential functions and provide emergency services for victims of the attacks. Key personnel from each department, not killed by the bombings, during the exercise actually relocated to alternate facilities and established incident command and department administrative and operational activities using the only means of communication available at the time, namely department radios and web-based communications. Only those facilities capable of providing back up power were available to coordinate emergency response to each bombing location.

Significant after action items were identified as a result of conducting this exercise. These items were captured and reported to Alachua County Officials as part of the After Action Report written by Critical Incident Solution's staff. Alachua County and the University of Florida benefited greatly from this exercise and is currently at a much higher level of preparedness for dealing with terrorist attacks due to county-wide participation in this exercise.

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Alachua County
University of Florida
Office of Emergency Management
Gainesville, Florida

NIMS Training

COOP Development & Training

Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)

Functional/Full Scale Exercise (HSEEP)

State of Ohio
Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Public Health Preparedness
Columbus, Ohio

Critical Incident Solutions provided Incident Command System training to the seven Ohio Public Health Regions. The courses consisted of ICS-300, ICS-400, and IS-800. The students in the classes were from a variety of disciplines in the public safety arena including, but not limited to, health care, fire, police, and other response agencies.

NIMS-ICS Training

Palm Beach County
Office of Emergency Management
West Palm Beach, Florida

TOPOFF Table-Top Exercise - Terrorist Attacks - Radiological, Chemical, Biological and Explosive Scenarios

Vulnerability Assessment Training

Incident Command Training

United States Department of State
District of Columbia

CIS provides senior policy consulting to the United States Department of State. This includes assisting in the development of equipment procurement and implementation plans, conducting WMD Countermeasures Response Training, Exercises and reviewing Threat and Vulnerability Assessments for 256 U.S. Embassies and Consulates.

CIS also assists in the development of security plans at high threat classified locations and provides subject matter experts to discuss counterterrorism and security issues at Senior Regional Security Officer Conferences.

WMD Countermeasures Training

Exercises

Threat and Vulnerability Assessments,

High Threat Security Planning,

PPE Procurement and Training

Senior Policy Consulting

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Fredericksburg, Virginia

Critical Incident Solutions provided direct instructional support for two courses conducted for the FBI Hazardous Materials Response Unit (HMRU). These courses cover a myriad of topics in the WMD response arena. This includes training students to utilize personal protective equipment and the evaluation of field exercises for collection of evidence in a contaminated environment.

HAZWOPER/WMD Crime Scene Investigation Training
City of Cincinnati
Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW)
Cincinnati, Ohio

Table-Top Workshop for NIMS-ICS Approach to Incident Management

State of South Carolina
(Statewide)
State Criminal Justice Academies

CIS is presently providing comprehensive NIMS-ICS 300 and 400 courses to the entire State of South Carolina. The attendees come from first responder organizations as well as state and local government.

NIMS-ICS Training (All-levels--for the entire State)

State of Minnesota
(Statewide)
State Department of Transportation

CIS is presently providing comprehensive NIMS-ICS 300 and 400 courses to the State of Minnesota. The attendees come from first responder organizations as well as state and local government.

NIMS-ICS Training (All-levels--for the entire State)

Florida International University
Miami, Florida

Emergency Management Training, Senior Executives Training

COOP Development

EOC Design

State of Nevada
(Statewide)

Department of Public Safety, Division of Emergency Management
Carson City, NV

Critical Incident Solutions has provided training to the State of Nevada Department of Public Safety (DPS) in the areas of the Incident Command Systems. To date, CIS has presented ICS-100, ICS-200, ICS-300, ICS-400, and several position-specific training courses throughout the state. This training contract will be continuing into December 2007.

NIMS-ICS Training (All-levels--for the entire State)

Pentagon Force Protection Agency
Arlington, Virginia

Critical Incident Solutions is providing training to over 70,000 military and civilian personnel on the use of emergency escape respirators. This project is a historical event. For the first time, a large number of civilians have been trained on procedures and equipment designed to provide protection against chemical, biological and radiological agents. Critical Incident Solutions was selected over much larger Washington DC area firms because or our technical superiority.

WMD Emergency Escape Mask Training

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State of Oregon
Oregon 102nd WMD Civil Support Team
Salem, Oregon

Full Scale Exercise (HSEEP)

MARTA Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA)
Atlanta, Georgia

Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)

Full Scale Exercise (HSEEP)

Miami-Dade County
Office of Emergency Management
Miami, Florida

Table-Top Exercises (HSSEP) Multiple “All Hazards” Scenarios

Super Bowl 2007 Table-Top HSEEP Exercise

COOP Development & Training

Alachua County
University of Florida
Office of Emergency Management
Gainesville, Florida

NIMS Training

COOP Development & Training

Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)

Functional/Full Scale Exercise (HSEEP)
State of Ohio
Emergency Management Agency / Department of Health
Columbus, Ohio

State Homeland Security Assessment Program

Governor’s Top Officials Exercise and Strategic National Stockpile Table-Top Exercise

Seminole County
Department of Public Safety-Emergency Management Division
Sanford, Florida

Top Officials (TOPOFF) Table Top Exercise – Pandemic Outbreak

County-Wide Table Top Exercise – Pandemic Outbreak

Palm Beach County
Office of Emergency Management
West Palm Beach, Florida

TOPOFF Table-Top Exercise - Terrorist Attacks - Radiological, Chemical, Biological and Explosive Scenarios

Vulnerability Assessment Training

Incident Command Training

United States Department of State
District of Columbia

CIS provides senior policy consulting to the United States Department of State. This includes assisting in the development of equipment procurement and implementation plans, conducting WMD Countermeasures Response Training, Exercises and reviewing Threat and Vulnerability Assessments for 256 U.S. Embassies and Consulates.

CIS also assists in the development of security plans at high threat classified locations and provides subject matter experts to discuss counterterrorism and security issues at Senior Regional Security Officer Conferences.

WMD Countermeasures Training

Exercises

Threat and Vulnerability Assessments,

High Threat Security Planning,

PPE Procurement and Training

Senior Policy Consulting

Progress Energy Corp.
Raleigh , North Carolina

TOPOFF Pandemic Avian Influenza Top Officials Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)
Polk County
Office of Emergency Management
Bartow, Florida

Table-Top Exercise (HSEEP)

CEMP, COOP and Terrorism Response Plan Review

Dolphins Stadium
Miami Gardens, Florida

Stadium Vulnerability Assessment

Super Bowl 2007 & 2010 Exercise Programs
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Federal Level Experience
Critical Incident Solutions has a thorough understanding of the unique homeland security needs and concerns facing many agencies of the United States federal government. As a result, many of these agencies have relied on our experience to identify and counter the ever-changing security threats and challenges facing our country.

Through an ongoing contract with the United States Department of State, CIS has demonstrated an ability to develop programs designed to protect critical assets at U.S. embassies and consulates around the world. Ongoing tasks associated with this essential national security initiative are the execution of threat/vulnerability assessments, assistance in personal protective equipment procurement, implementation of emergency response training classes and the development of emergency response plans at various high-threat classified sites.

Federal Clients:
U.S. Department of Defense
The Pentagon Force Protection Agency
Defense Intelligence Agency
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Capitol Police Department
U.S. Department of Justice
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. Department of Energy
U.S. State Department
U.S. District Court
U.S. Marshals Service
U.S. Mint
Supreme Court Police Department

State Level Management
Emergency response administrators at the state level need assistance in preparing strategies and equipping personnel to respond to all-hazards catastrophic incidents within their jurisdictions. Critical Incident Solutions provides full-circle support to state level emergency response agencies and Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) cities by managing various aspects of their respective homeland security programs.

CIS supported the State Homeland Security Assessment and Strategy (SHSAS) Program by developing homeland security recommendations for all county jurisdictions within a state. In doing this, CIS performed threat/vulnerability assessments and developed strategic response plans designed to reduce vulnerabilities to all-hazards events within each jurisdiction. On-site emergency responder training was developed and conducted on a state-wide basis ensuring optimal levels of emergency response preparedness.

State/County/City Clients:
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority
State of Ohio
State of Florida
State of Nevada
State of Missouri
State of Oklahoma
State of Vermont
State of Alabama
Ohio Department of Public Safety
Ohio Emergency Management Agency
Ohio Department of Health
Cincinnati Waterworks
Hamilton County, OH
Miami-Dade County, FL
Alachua County, FL
Polk County, FL
Seminole County, FL
Palm Beach County, FL
Salt Lake City, UT
Fort Wayne, IN
Vernon, CA
Alexandria, VA
UASI City of Tampa, FL
UASI City of Columbus, OH
UASI City of Cincinnati, OH
UASI City of Cleveland, OH
UASI City of St. Louis, MO
UASI City of Kansas City, MO
UASI City of Oklahoma City, OK
UASI City of Las Vegas, NV

Private Level Support
Critical Incident Solutions has established strategic relationships with industry leading insurance companies. By working as partners with these companies, CIS provides tailored solutions designed to meet the unique homeland security needs of these private sector clients. We understand these challenges and strive to balance the desire these clients have to protect their assets without impacting business operations or customer service.

Private Sector Clients:
Major League Baseball
Progress Energy
Special Olympics