Thinking Critically about EAPs – An Open Panel Discussion on How to Improve your EAP (90-minute session)
Emergency Action Plans (EAPs) are critical to helping dam owners understand how to identify and respond to potential emergency conditions at an impounding structure. The purpose of the plan is to specify preplanned actions to be followed to minimize loss of life and property damage. Virginia requires all High and Significant Hazard potential structures maintain an EAP with coordination with the department of Emergency Management. An updated EAP is to be submitted to the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) at least every six years in conjunction with a tabletop exercise. Routine updates to an EAP are to confirm contact information of critical personnel and to provide necessary changes to responsibilities based on the most recent information regarding the structure and the potentially inundated areas downstream. However, there is often not enough attention given during these routine updates, especially in regard to coordination and communication between key partners, stakeholders, and the dam owner. This presentation is intended to use the entire 90-minute session to discuss how to improve and/or enhance EAPs. The first 45 minutes will be an overview of the required format all Virginia EAPs must follow per the current regulations. Best practices and trends in emergency planning and management will be discussed, along with our own experience and observations in enhancements across the US through conducting numerous EAP exercises. The remaining 45 minutes will be a panel discussion where members of the audience will be encouraged to ask questions of panel members regarding their own experience with emergency planning for dams. The panel will include the following:
- Mark Killgore, PE (Lead Dam Safety Engineer at DCR)
- Jon Keeling, PE, CFM (Senior Principal Engineer for Dams and Levees at Stantec)
- Leah O’Neil (Dams Safety Coordinator at Newport News Waterworks)
- Emergency Management Coordinator TBD
Author Bio
Jon Keeling has over 30 years of experience specializing in water resource engineering of dam and levee safety projects. He currently serves as a Dam Safety Subject Matter Expert for FEMA National Dam Safety Program, providing technical support on various dam safety issues, risk prioritization, dam safety training, and emergency response. Mark Killgore had an extensive career in Washington before becoming the Lead Dam Safety Engineer for Virginia DCR. Killgore has worked for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louis Berger Group and Puget Sound Energy. He also has experience in engineering education having served on the faculty both at Seattle University and the University of Texas at Austin. Leah O'Neil has been with Newport News Waterworks for 14 years helping to manage six dams in multiple jurisdictions. She is an Experienced program manager and technical professional with a demonstrated history working in the water industry.
