EMRAAS Pilot Project Team update to FEMA senior leadership

The OPPA Associate Administrator provided another EMRAAS Pilot Project Team update to FEMA senior leadership. One of the topics raised for EMRAAS Pilot Project Team consideration was that of resources; specifically, what type and in what amounts. It was acknowledged by FEMA senior leadership that detailed planning at this point would be "big picture" in nature. However, emergency management-related resources from a national perspective are not unlimited and sufficient lead-time will be needed to ensure proper resources are strategically located in advance of a Hurricane Lani landfall. This strategic pre-positioning approach is preferred to provide emergency management support as quickly as possible to those landfall areas most impacted by the Hurricane Lani weather event. Of specific interested from FEMA senior leadership was the identification and prioritization of those emergency support function (ESF) capabilities thought by the EMRAAS Pilot Project Team to be most in demand after landfall. Since there are 15 different ESF categories, FEMA senior leadership is intensely interested in the EMRAAS Pilot Project Team's initial thoughts regarding those ESFs considered "most important." With this information, FEMA senior leadership – and other relevant internal and external stakeholders – can begin the necessary planning actions to proactively start to request, schedule, and pre-position the prioritized ESF capabilities as soon as possible and certainly before actual landfall. As a result, the OPPA Associate Administrator has tasked the EMRAAS Pilot Project Team for a point paper that provides our Team's brainstorming thoughts on which ESF sectors the Team views as "most important" when it comes to best ensuring the most effective and efficient disaster preparedness and subsequent response/recovery actions to be taken by the whole emergency management community for the benefit of all affected stakeholders. Request the EMRAAS Pilot Project Team to briefly discuss the role of "emergency support function" (ESF) sectors as they relate to emergency management. How are they organized and why?