O'Fallon officials outline emergency operations plan and public communication after recent tornado

Chief Brad White, the city’s director of public safety, told the O'Fallon City Council that the city maintains a comprehensive emergency operations plan (EOP) that guides prevention, response and recovery for disasters but is not published in full because some operational details would raise public-safety risks. "The entire emergency operations plan is not something that is... published as a whole," White said, adding that the EOP is "a roadmap, it's a guideline in case there is an emergency."

Why it matters: Several residents at the meeting said they could not find the EOP online and asked how the public is informed when incidents occur. Council members pressed staff on how the plan is exercised and how the city coordinates with schools and county agencies during incidents that exceed local capacity. The discussion followed a recent tornado touchdown in the area that prompted multi-department responses but did not lead to a mayoral disaster declaration.

White said the plan is built on federal and state authorities including the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act and applicable provisions of…