THE BLUE CELL INTEL SUMMARY VOL.2 ISSUE 8

Aurora Theater Shooting

             On Friday, July 20, 2012, a heavily armed gunman entered Theater Nine of Aurora, Colorado’s Century 16 movie theater and opened fire. The crowd, who was in attendance for the midnight premiere of The Dark Knight Rises, consisted of families, students, armed forces members, young professionals and cinematic enthusiasts. As horrified movie goers began to dispurse in a haze of gun fire and confusion, twelve people were killed and at least 58 others were injured. In the days following the shooting, the local, national and international community surrounded those who were lost and survivors with unprecendented love and support. The local media continues to report stories of true heroism in the face of unimaginable circumstances that provoke internal reflection.

            The Aurora Theater Tragedy, as dubbed by local media outlets, occurred just eleven miles from The Blue Cell, LLC main office. Several of the companies principals have called Aurora, Colorado home for over 40 years. The Blue Cell, LLC offers its endless condolences for the victims, families, friends and community affected by the shooting.

Chelsea Manns

Contracts and Aquisitions Group Lead
The Blue Cell, LLC

THE BLUE CELL INTEL SUMMARY VOL.2 ISSUE 7

           I’ve been sitting through training classes for the last few years and have just started teaching them recently. Do you ever sit in some of these classes and wonder what you’re really getting out of them? You learn the principles, objectives and the way that things should be done, but when can you really apply them? Exercises are great to practice, but they’re also just training. In the last two months, I have seen it all come together; experiences in not only ICS, but leadership, management and even some of those preverbal ‘judo’ classes have been eye opening.

            In April 2012, I got a call from the Commerce City Police Department asking for me to come do Plans and Logistics for the operation at a landfill in their search for a missing, yet presumed deceased, baby. I’ve been in Emergency Management for four years and never thought a request like that would come in. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I had been on some small fires that only lasted one operational period, but this was expected to last for weeks. I jumped at the opportunity to go help in such a sad situation, and if anything, to help bring justice to this child. My first day, I arrived on scene and the first thing that hit me was the smell. We were in the middle of a landfill and had 2.5 acres of trash, 20 feet high, to sift through. We had eight IMT members there every day, sitting in the mobile command post in the middle of trash, filling the Command and General Staff roles; I had never done plans so that was a new experience. We had the responsibility of the IAP each day and check in/check out, and we also helped out with volunteer management. Logistics was a little different than what I was used to as well. We had to shop every day for water, Gatorade and snacks since we never knew when the operation would end. The catering was scheduled to bring lunch every day, but we didn’t need 40 pallets of stuff hanging around that we had no place to put. I had some strange requests too…one of the workers had asked for essential oils to put in his mask so he didn’t have to smell the trash. I also quickly figured out that law enforcement operations are vastly different from fire operations. This operation was extremely small, roughly 40-50 people on scene each day with only a day shift operational period. Fire operations, in contrast, can have a couple thousand people working through the night and can last for weeks at a time. The main agencies that worked each day were the Army and Air National Guard, Douglas County OEM and numerous volunteers. The operation lasted 53 days before the infant’s body was recovered.

            Only a few weeks later, I was deployed to the High Park Fire in Ft. Collins, CO. I was deployed as an Ordering Manager Trainee with the Rocky Mountain Type 2 IMT and was held over for a week with the Type 1 team. We had four Ordering Managers, three Supply Unit Leaders and three Logistics Section Chiefs that I worked with specifically. Our process was having an order filled out on a 213 General Message and ordering items through Expanded Dispatch with the Forest Service dispatch center in Ft. Collins. Ordering was hectic at times because of all of the info needed to order something specifically, we had to run around and find the person who ordered it and find out. Until supplies could be properly ordered, such as living arrangements, many of us slept in our vehicles. That can really take a lot of time! I’ve had years of training classes and working on an incident of this magnitude made them click; it all came together . The ICS components finally seemed to make sense and watching some things like the chain of command work really made sense. We’re taught a certain way to do things and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. ICS works. I ordered more supplies then I can name, overhead that came in every day and equipment and crews that I didn’t know existed. The High Park Fire was a priceless learning experience and now I feel more confident in teaching ICS.

           The experiences I’ve had in the last month have been monumental for me. I’ve learned more than I ever thought I could, met some amazing people who love to share what they know and have a much better handle on ICS. It’s not often that someone can say “I truly love my job” but I am one of the lucky people that can.

Cherie Abbott

Trainer

The Blue Cell, LLC

THE BLUE CELL INTEL SUMARY VOL. 2 ISSUE 6

COMMAND SCHOOL TTX: INNOVATION, DEVELOPMENT AND EXPANSION FOR THE BLUE CELL, LLC

            In March 2012, talks began between east coast emergency management exercise company, Command School TTX, and The Blue Cell, LLC in hopes of merging the two brands to create a decisive name in Emergency Planning Concepts. Though each company operates in different FEMA regions, a combination of Rocky Mountain/Midwest and New England/East Coast training, exercise and real world disaster knowledge could spell dynamic success for both companies. This merger comes as a result of a combination of factors, including The Blue Cell, LLC’s aspirations of becoming a national household name for its practical, yet simple, execution of FEMA training and exercise programs.

            Currently, each company has its own individual area of expertise in Emergency Planning. The Blue Cell, LLC’s continued growth in five of the Rocky Mountain states is fueled by the quintessential piece of Emergency Planning success; training. With one of the most exhaustive lists of training courses offered in the industry, including the creation, development, and application of the Advance Planning Course, or APC, The Blue Cell, LLC is poised to be a leader in FEMA training nationally.

            Command School TTX, however, acquired its notoriety through the creation of Abbottville™, a miniature diorama of an existing city used to enhance the exercise portion of Emergency Planning Concepts. The brain child of retired Division Chief with the Warren Township Fire Department in Indianapolis, Indiana, Don Abbott, the Abbottville™  diorama exercise has said to have been “like no other class” and “the best by far” in the industry according to professionals who have been taken through the Abbottville™ exercise. 

            While it may appear that these two companies function under very different ideals as to what is the most important aspect of Emergency Planning, both current owners of each company are quoted as being “very excited” about the progression of the merger. The combination of advanced training with experienced instructors and the innovative diorama looks to be the next step in expanding the field of Emergency Planning, and The Blue Cell, LLC is at the center of what may be a bright future. Talks between Brian Long, owner of Command School TTX, and Todd Manns continue as the logistics of a final agreement are being arranged. It is expected that by June 1, 2012 Command School TTX will be a fully operational subsidiary of The Blue Cell, LLC.

Chelsea Manns

Contracts and Aquisitions Group Lead

The Blue Cell, LLC

THE BLUE CELL INTEL SUMMARY VOL. 2 ISSUE 5

When is the last time that you participated in an exercise with over 800,000 people?  That’s exactly what happened in the Salt Lake valley of Utah the week of April 16^th 2012 during the Great Utah Shakeout.  The Salt Lake valley sits on the Wasatch fault and is primed for a potential massive earthquake. The statewide disaster exercise simulated a magnitude 7.0 earthquake, the destruction that would follow, and the steps emergency managers would need to take in the initial response stage. 

The Blue Cell sent several members to Utah as a part of a Colorado contingency tasked with evaluating and mentoring various IMT3’s and EOC’s. Randy Freed, Training and Exercise Services Group Lead, worked with and evaluated the Planning Section of the Salt Lake City EOC in downtown Salt Lake City.  Travis Bailey, Deployment Services Group Lead, evaluated the Unified Fire IMT3 Logistics Section of the ICP located in Herriman City on the southwest side of the Salt Lake valley. 

FEMA Region VIII used Utah as a pilot for the IMT3 program and this large-scale exercise was a capstone for the last two years of education that has been grant funded. Since I worked exclusively in the Unified Fire ICP, I will share some thoughts on that portion of the exercise.

Building a fully capable IMT3 is a somewhat daunting task when you are starting from scratch. However, that is exactly what Unified Fire Authority (UFA) and the State of Utah set out to do.  They have been aggressively sending team members to trainings throughout the Rocky Mountain Region and conducting their own exercises for the past 24 months.  The Blue Cell has participated in and taught some of the classes that were instrumental in this education.  From position specific classes in the Planning section to Command and General Staff exercises, we have been able to see this group become a team. This is a testament to the members of the UFA and their partners, showing what is possible when all members of a team share a common goal.

The exercise employed one of the basic tenants of ICS: home unit rank or position does not matter in ICS.  We were able to see a large fire department with a rigid hierarchy put rank aside and work as a team.  This is not an easy task for many, and a common failure in the new collaborative world of All-Hazard IMT3’s.

As we left the exercise at the After Action Review (AAR), I was impressed to hear them all acknowledge the good work they had put in, and begin the process of identifying deficiencies and needs.  These types of full-scale exercises are undertaken to recognize shortcomings that need to be corrected before the actual incident; however, it is just as important to point out the positives. If the goal at the beginning of this project was to create fully functioning All-Hazard IMT3, then they clearly have accomplished their goal.

Travis Bailey

Deployment Services Group Lead

THE BLUE CELL INTEL SUMMARY VOL. 2 ISSUE 4

HANDHELD TOOLS

As spring begins, the country's weather changes the enviromental threats Emergency Personell must handle. Dry conditions in the west have signaled the official start of wildfire season and the tornadoes over the first part of year have caused emergency resources to launch into action in the midwest. The Blue Cell Technical Services Group continues to develop and refine tools for first responders in various application (app) formats in hopes of keeping up with the changing conditions.

The Blue Cell has strived to keep up with the rapidly changing technology seen in the private sector. The addition of its mobile applications has made national resources readily available for use during incidents and exercises and to allow access to documents even when out of cell range. Recent updates to The Blue Cell app include the addition of field operations guides from FEMA, USAID, the United States Coast Guard and the National Urban Search & Rescue. This particular app also has the Federal Acronyms and Terms book, the FEMA position checklist, ICS forms and FEMA resource typing.

For wildfire responders a separate app called Wildland Fire Tools features Fire orders, Watchout Situations, Size up, Briefing Checklists, the Incident Response Pocket Guide, the 310-1, the Fireline Handbook and weather links to NOAA.     

For more information visit www.thebluecell.com for links to these applications. Applying and sharing our beliefs is our passion. We aspire to continue to provide the aids needed to successfully and safely confront the changing weather conditions nationwide. Both The Blue Cell and Wildland Fire Tools apps are available for no charge to download.

Shane Doyon, Technical Service Group Lead, The Blue Cell, LLC

The Blue Cell Intel Summary Vol. 2 Issue 3

HSEEP COMPLIANT GAME MAKES DEBUT

Yesterday in Gunnison, Colorado, the much anticipated Incident Leadership and Decisions (ILD) Game was conducted. The ILD is a Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program compliant, eight hour session that took twenty participants through a very involved scenario based on one of the fifteen DHS national planning scenarios. Set in The Blue Cell, LLC’s Chelsea County USA web environment, teams competed for a score against each other while resource managing, problem solving and practicing leadership principles.

Prior to the gaming session, two lecture segments, one specifically on leadership and the other on the Incident Management Decision Making Process, were conducted. Within the Chelsea County USA web environment, resources lists, maps, live emails and a live phone number to dispatch were made available. To enhance the hundreds of typed resources within the Chelsea County website, exact matches of all of the vehicles being deployed were used on a twenty foot long gaming board to maintain a common operating picture for all of the players. Teams were also supplied with the Chelsea County USA emergency operations plan, county mutual aid agreement and county budget.

 This unique approach to exercise is what was envisioned years ago by the developers of HSEEP and now it is available to emergency managers, incident response personnel and community leaders.

This exercise can also count as an annual exercise for those required to do so as part of a granting program. As part of the service, The Blue Cell, LLC supplies the complete situation manual, master scenario events list, and completed exercise evaluation guide making this product truly innovative.

For more information on this exciting new approach to exercising and training, go to www.thebluecell.com . On our website under the training and exercise tab located on the left side of the screen, testimonials from participants from the debut delivery are available; under the situation unit tab, click on our Youtube channel  to watch video from the session;  within our web store, pricing information is available to help bring the ILD to you.

Todd Manns, Owner, The Blue Cell, LLC

The Blue Intel Summary Vol. 2 Issue 2

Instructing: the act of imparting information.  How many classes have you attended that the instructor either has no idea what he is supposed to teach or is obviously there for his own self aggrandizement?

The older I get, the more resentful I become of those who waste my time.  I also am hyper aware of people who are obviously not prepared and try to bluff their way through a class.  The little things show up first; they seem lost, they try to schmooze and be the party guy.  My favorite is the instructor who will put on the mask of the big wig, so superior; he obviously has nothing to say but that doesn’t keep him from talking insistently.  I too, however, love the sound of my own voice.  But for me, there is always the overriding desire to send the pupil away with information that will serve them in an incident.

I have had the dubious honor of being on a wide variety of incidents: tornados, floods, blizzards, wild land fires, the Columbine School shooting, disease outbreaks, civil disorder, and hurricanes. Being on the dark side of age 50, I am over myself.  These incidents have real consequences for real living people. 

FEMA has issued curriculum for ICS classes.  It is considered, tested and proven in the field.  The books have been printed, the power point issued.   The remaining wild card is the instructor. I happen to work for a company that values pure instruction.  Yes, I know that I am blessed.  We, as a company, deliver the ICS curriculum as it is written.  We infuse the material with our own personal experiences to illustrate a point, but the material itself is unaltered. The written material then becomes all the more relevant when coupled with our field experience.

Imagine having a class taught by someone with no experience.  It would seem all academic with a lack of field experience or testing. It is apparent, however, that the prevailing thought is that anyone can teach ICS classes.  I vehemently disagree.  The curriculum is too important to be left to amateurs.   I assert that these classes must be instructed by those who have actually been on the ground in a command or general staff role.

In my previous career, there was an axiom: “If you dont have time to do it right, when are you going to have time to do it over?”  There is too much at stake to have inexperienced, unwilling and unmotivated people delivering training.

Be prudent in hiring.

Randy Freed

Training and Exercise Services Group Lead

The Blue Cell, LLC