Don’t Let Disaster Shake Your Community: Tips for Emergency Preparedness

October 6, 2026

The Loma Prieta earthquake rattled the Bay Area on October 17, 1989, causing over 60 fatalities, thousands of injuries, and billions of dollars of property damage. The magnitude 6.9 quake became one of the biggest and most expensive disasters in the state, but in the 37 years since it shook six counties, it has also become one of the most studied disasters.

The lessons in emergency preparedness and emergency response from Loma Prieta are still relevant today, and millions of Californians get a yearly reminder when they participate in the Great ShakeOut earthquake drill every October. But local governments are well aware that earthquakes are only one type of disaster that could strike.

Luckily, there are plenty of resources available to help local governments develop an emergency operations plan and practice implementing it. Putting in the time to prepare for emergencies before disaster strikes can save lives and promote community resilience.

Review your Emergency Operations Plan

The best place to start evaluating your jurisdiction’s level of emergency preparedness is by reviewing the Emergency Operations Plan (EOP). An EOP is a preparedness document that establishes an emergency management organization and guides a jurisdiction’s coordinated actions before, during, and after a disaster. It is a best practice to periodically review the EOP to make sure it is up to date. And if your jurisdiction does not have an EOP, now is a great time to start preparing it.

Most EOPs follow the same basic structure. The Federal Emergency Management Agency requires local governments to comply with the National Incident Management System to be eligible for Preparedness Grants. Similarly, state agencies and local governments in California must use the Standardized Emergency Management System to qualify for any reimbursement of response-related costs under the state’s disaster assistance programs. FEMA and the California Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) maintain comprehensive guides on developing EOPs that comply with NIMS and SEMS.

Alternatively, some cities and towns may have joint plans with counties or neighboring jurisdictions. California counties are designated as “operational areas” under the California Emergency Services Act, and since 2022, counties have been required to submit their emergency plans to Cal OES for review. Even when cities and towns choose to develop their own EOPs, soliciting input from the county, the local fire district, and the sheriff’s department can help ensure that the plan accurately reflects the division of responsibility during and after a disaster. Local jurisdictions should be sure to solicit this input in updating the EOP as well.

While plans have the same basic structure it is important to review your jurisdiction’s plan with attention to the details important to your jurisdiction and to consider what changes may have occurred since the last update. For example, have there been changes in your agency’s organizational chart? Have any facilities been added or remodeled? Are there new non-profits willing to play a role in disaster response?

There are many private consultants available to help update or draft EOPs. While input from consultants can be helpful, it’s best not to delegate the entire project of creating an EOP to a third party, because local government officials need to be familiar with the final EOP in order to successfully implement it.

Preparing the “Legal Go-Bag”

Just like your family’s go-bag has food, water, first aid and other essentials ready to go, a legal go-bag (really a binder) has draft resolutions, mutual aid agreements, contact information lists, and other reference material or template documents that can be quickly executed during an emergency.

The League of California Cities offers a three-volume emergency playbook with sample documents for before, during, and after a disaster, as well as supplemental resources on more specific legal issues and suggestions for customization.

Tip: Cal Cities recommends a city attorney keep several copies of the playbook. Ideally, there are copies in the attorney’s office or city hall, in the emergency operations center, and in the attorney’s car.

It’s important to have physical copies of the documents available, ideally in a format that would allow the attorney to fill in the details by hand in case there is no internet or electricity during the emergency. A city attorney should also make sure that there are attorneys who can serve as back-ups, and that these attorneys are also familiar with the location and contents of the playbook. Remember, disaster doesn’t wait until a city attorney is back from vacation.

City attorneys should review and update the contents of the playbook regularly, checking for things like names of city employees who no longer work for the city or who have changed roles. The attorney may also have to replenish the template documents after each emergency to make sure the playbook stays complete.

Tip: In addition to keeping the blank template documents organized by type in the playbook, it may also be helpful to add sections at the back of the handbook that are organized by incident and have all of the completed documents used for each emergency or drill. That way, it’s easier to check what the city or town did previously when a comparable situation arises.

Creating or maintaining the “legal go-bag” or emergency playbook can help city attorneys and city officials think through some of the legal issues that could arise during an emergency before disaster strikes. For example, will private firefighters be permitted to enter evacuation zones during a wildfire?

Similarly, a city attorney can save time during an emergency if they are already familiar with the emergency meeting provisions of the Brown Act.

Running Emergency Drills

Running emergency simulations or table-top exercises is a good way to test out the EOP and legal go-bag. Emergency drills can help city officials identify any issues that may arise during an emergency and adapt the EOP and mutual aid agreements accordingly.

Tip: Consultants can also help facilitate or provide feedback on table-top exercises.

Unique geography or development patterns in a city or town may leave certain areas more vulnerable during evacuations. A city may need to plan to give safety information in multiple languages. There could be a specific land use development, like an industrial facility, that might require special attention in the case of emergency. These are the types of location-specific details that are helpful to evaluate and plan for in advance.

Tip: Disasters don’t care where the jurisdictional boundaries lie. To make emergency drills as realistic as possible, they should include all relevant agencies. Consider coordinating drills with the county, the local fire district, representatives from local hospitals, neighboring cities and towns, and local city and county law enforcement offices.

Managing information dissemination is a crucial part of every emergency, and something local governments can practice and plan for through emergency drills. In addition to activating a public information officer, city officials should be prepared to coordinate and manage public visits from high-profile state and federal officials.

And while emergency drills are important internally, events and information sessions for the public are a great way to spread awareness and foster community—especially when they involve free food! For example, the Woodside Fire Protection District hosted a multi-agency evacuation exercise in September based on a wildfire scenario (with ice cream at the end).

Plan for More than Natural Disasters

A city or town’s emergency response will likely follow the same basic procedure for any type of disaster, but there are some special considerations local governments can plan for when it comes to “man-made” emergencies like mass shootings or acts of terrorism.

In particular, the role of the city government may shift as law enforcement officials take the lead during and immediately after mass casualty incidents. That shift may impact how the agencies choose to handle public information responsibilities.

Additionally, the local government may consider creating a victim’s compensation fund to streamline the collection and distribution of donations. By partnering quickly with local nonprofits to do so, local governments can utilize these organizations’ established social media presence, membership networks, and fundraising expertise. Making connections with these types of potential partners in advance of disasters can facilitate quick implementation when the unexpected occurs.

Tip: These funds can be created before an incident, so that they are ready to receive donations should this type of emergency occur.

Emergency Preparedness Checklist: A Summary

1. Review and update (or create) an Emergency Operations Plan.
2. Compile a “legal go-bag” of template documents to be used or referenced in an emergency.
3. Review and update or develop mutual aid agreements or joint emergency plans.
4. Plan and execute an emergency simulation or table-top exercise.
5. Distribute emergency preparedness information to the public using all available channels.
6. Consider how emergencies other than natural disasters will affect the execution of the EOP.

If you would like to discuss your agency’s emergency preparedness please contact SMW Partners Richard Taylor, Osa Wolff, Catherine Engberg, or Heather Minner. Thank you to law clerk Stella Lorence for help in drafting this article.

Image: Collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct. USGS., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons