Post-Disaster 101:
Document. Document. Document!

By Tad Monroe

In this age of media scrutiny and rampant litigation, emergency and disaster response professionals all too often operate in a "fish bowl." TV cameras, then the lawyers, follow close behind the rescue personnel.

Precise and thorough disaster documentation is essential. "Poor documentation is a significant problem in search and rescue and disaster response. People hurry, get sloppy, or distracted. Later it comes back to hurt us. It is nearly impossible to go back and retrace our steps and thought processes a week and sometimes a year after the operation," states Lt. Thomas Miner, Pierce County, Washington Sheriff’s Department.

Assistant Fire Chief Bryan Pearson, Central Pierce County Fire & Rescue, warns, "If you do it, you had better write it down, especially if it has to do with medical treatment."

Why Document?

Field documentation must be thorough, precise, and survive the rigors of emergency response situations. The reasons for documentation are numerous.

Documentation can…
• Save lives and prevent the risk of further injury, especially when related to medical treatment
• Provide a database for event reconstruction, in case of litigation or later investigations
• Provide a database to "learn from our history"
• Save time and money for agencies and ultimately the taxpayers!

Priorities for Documentation

Documentation must be done right the first time!
Jane Vukonich, FEMA Region X Response and Recovery Division, stated, "Our project officers are often in the field establishing costs for property and structure restoration. They must get what they need the first time so we will not waste our time and the tax payer’s money."

This includes knowing what information to collect. While Emergency Management plans will vary, documentation priorities generally include:

1. Photo documentation of the site and search area
2. Search data such as clues, descriptions, etc.
3. Planning data such as outlines of operations procedures, time periods, maps, etc.
4. Procedures for medical care
5. Collection of safety data
6. Forms for Incident Command including an "Action Plan"
7. Collection of data for property damage

Protection of the Documentation

Steps must be taken to protect and preserve documentation in the field so there is no need to revisit a site because of incomplete, lost or illegible notes. Many field operations take place in adverse conditions such as rain, snow, mud, oil, sludge, etc. Couple these elements with the long duration of many operations. Documentation can get wet, torn, crumpled and become generally illegible.

Disaster response personnel may employ a variety of note-taking methods in an attempt to protect their valuable data from loss. These methods include plastic boards with markers and clipboards housed in plastic bags. Fortunately with the advent of all-weather paper and notebooks much of the hassle of protecting field documentation has been removed. Standard forms can be pre-produced on a paper designed for outdoor use. Personnel can be equipped with all-weather notebooks.

Training that stresses the importance of precise documentation and document protection can go a long way in saving money, preventing litigation, and improving the overall effectiveness of field operations.

Poor documentation is a universally recognized pitfall. Lt. Miner says, "One of the first things we teach in our training classes is – document, document, document – everything!"

About the Author
Tad Monroe is a consultant with J.L. Darling Corporation, manufacturer of "Rite in the Rain", an all-weather writing paper. For more information on this topic, call (253) 922-5000, or visit their web site at www.riteintherain.com.