Crime & Safety
In Event of Disaster, Piedmont's Neighbors Would Help
If a major earthquake or firestorm strikes, the city would set up an incident command center at the police department and call surrounding cities for aid.
When a firestorm swept through the Oakland Hills 20 years ago, Piedmont homes were spared, but emergency vehicles were brought in from around the region and stationed along Moraga Avenue.
“Engines were from towns 60 to 70 miles away, as well as closer ones in the county,” said Piedmont City Administrator Geoff Grote.
Grote recalled meeting with the fire chief about how to respond to the potential disaster facing Piedmont in the driveway in front of the fire station.
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Today, in the event a major catastrophe such as an earthquake or fire strikes the city, the response would also likely involve a combination of local and regional efforts, though with a bit more sophistication.
Depending on the extent of the disaster, the city would set up an incident command center and request mutual aid, first from nearby agencies, then from throughout the state, and possibly at the federal level, said Piedmont Fire Capt. Bud McLaren.
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From the emergency operations center (which is normally used as a conference room) inside the police department, a general command staff would oversee the response in Piedmont with regard to personnel, planning, logistics and finance.
“Someone in charge knows exactly where things are and where things need to be,” Piedmont Fire Chief Ed Tubbs said.
In the event of a disaster affecting cities beyond Piedmont—a more likely scenario—a regional command post would be set up in Oakland or another area of Alameda County, McLaren said.
“The chances of Piedmont having a local disaster is probably pretty slim," he said.
A regional response would be coordinated according to the standardized incident command system now used at all levels of government.
“We use the same format across the land,” Tubbs said. “That’s its beauty and benefit.”
Despite the benefits, Tubbs couldn't recall having used the incident command system, likely because the last major disasters in the area were the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 and the Oakland Hills firestorm in 1991.
“Much of the disaster prep that has gone on is because of those two events,” Grote said. “In those days, we didn’t have an EOC (emergency operations center) or anything like that.”
