National Response Framework
Under the National Response Framework (NRF), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is assigned as the primary agency for Emergency Support Function #3 – Public Works and Engineering.
The Corps of Engineers assists the Federal Emergency Management Agency by coordinating federal public works and engineering-related support, as well as providing technical assistance, engineering expertise, and construction management to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from domestic incidents.
Every year, the Corps sends hundreds of people to respond to disasters around the world. In 2009, hundreds have responded to one or more of 17 major disaster declarations as a result of floods and severe winter storms from Hawaii to Maine, North Dakota to Mississippi, and many states in between. In 2008, nearly 900 Corps employees were engaged in hurricane emergency support missions.
Emergency Missions under the NRF
The Corps of Engineers has more than 40 specially-trained response teams ready to perform a wide range of missions, as assigned by FEMA. These missions include:
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Temporary power – Providing emergency power to critical public facilities.
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Commodities (Ice and water) – Management and emergency contracting to support public health and safety, such as providing potable drinking water and ice.
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Debris management – Emergency debris clearance and removal and disposal management of debris from public property.
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Emergency infrastructure assessments – Manage structural safety assessments of commercial and residential structures, as well as the assessments of infrastructure systems, such as water and waste water treatment facilities.
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Urban search and rescue – Structural specialists support FEMA Urban Search & Rescue Task Forces and/or state and local jurisdictions and other structural engineering assessment and technical assistance support as requested.
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Critical public facility restoration – Temporary replacement of critical public facilities, such as classrooms, health clinics, fire and EMS stations, and other public service facilities, as requested by FEMA.
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Temporary roofing – Missions range from providing technical assistance to managing and contracting installation of blue plastic sheeting onto the roofs of damaged homes or public structures.
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Demolition/structural stabilization – Emergency demolition or stabilization of damaged structures and facilities.
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Housing – Temporary housing missions can be wide ranging and may include technical assistance to FEMA and/or their contractors, placing pre-fabricated units on private property or existing mobile home parks, as well as design and construction of new group mobile home sites, to include the necessary infrastructure and placement of units.
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Prime power (249th Engineer Battalion) - The 249th Engineer Battalion (Prime Power) is a unique U.S. Army Corps of Engineers asset that the Corps often deploys in response to large natural and manmade disasters and in support of Overseas Contingency Operations, like those in Iraq and Afghanistan.