Developing a plan for team disaster response, needing help and perspective

[mitunnelrat]

So, as I'm sure you could probably guess, my trip to a disaster zone had a profound impact on my thinking. I've got another thread detailing my life plan and dream, which includes giving back to my community, but much of that is a staged action with the community end coming in at later dates. I've got a direction I can go now though, with short term benefit.

In the event of an emergency or disaster occurring locally, my family is my first priority and concern, but I know now I wouldn't be content to sit through a short term event once I know they're safe. I'd also like to be better equipped for trips to other areas. I can't remember if I mentioned it or not, but we blew a tire on the trailer we borrowed and took to Joplin. There was no spare.

I'm working on a proposal to expand the emergency capabilities of my church - up to and including the formation of a nonprofit organization. With that in mind, what are the various paths I could follow on this? Thus far I have ideas to network with local officials up to county level (and any relevant federal agencies operating within the same). I'd like to establish contacts and form working relationships with other charitable agencies (such as the American Red Cross), as well as the local ambulance services and hospitals.

What are your thoughts on the pros and cons to these segments, and what am I missing?

I want to stock and maintain a disaster response trailer for local and domestic operations. 6'x12' tandem axle, ramp door utility trailers seem to be an operational standard to this end. I've seen that it can be air compressor and generator equipped to operate off grid. Ladder rack on top, and have shelves installed for tools and supplies. My personal outlook is to put the compressor and generator, and some form of welder at the nose, under a work bench (with cabinets above that) ahead of the side door.

I'm thinking to hang hoses, ropes, and landscaping tools such as shovels and rakes along one side of the trailer, and to install shelving along the other side for tools and supplies. From what I can tell, the largest pallet in use in N. America is 48"x40", and the next largest is 42"x42", so I'd like to keep an area 48"w open from the axles on back. That leaves an area 10"w x 5' long (per the trailer specs I referenced) on each side for the racks and shelves. I think that would also leave enough space to put a rolling tool chest opposite of the side door between the shelves and the work bench. Speaking of the side door, I believe an industrial first aid kit and a fire extinguisher would be appropriate there, so they're quickly accessible with the door open.

I'm also estimating that a couple of wheelbarrows would fit between a pallet and the rear door.

Moving again to the exterior, I think a roll up awning on one side or the other would be a good idea, but preferably on the door side if it will fit. Shade was at a premium in Joplin, and some protection from other elements could come in handy, along with it being located with the trailer. Finally, I don't know what it takes to establish a HAM repeater, but I'm considering mounting a triangular antenna tower on the tongue, near the front wall, as something of a multi-purpose ladder to reach the roof rack. I saw a wall mounted ladder on one trailer, and like the idea, so I decided to see if its viable to expand upon it. I thought that using an antenna tower as a ladder would (at the least) allow the addition of comms for ARES/ SAR operations, and also provide an elevated platform for floodlights.

So, with all that in mind, is it feasible? What quantities and types of tools/ supplies would you stock it with to equip a 10 man team for SAR, general construction, and demolition tasks? Can someone more knowledgable help me figure out which full sized passenger van offers a decent compromise between gas mileage and its towing capacity? This is assuming the trailer is fully loaded to a cargo capacity of 5,200 pounds, meeting its GVW of 7,000 pounds, and there is a full 10 man team in the van itself.

Finally, I mentioned examining the need/ feasibility of forming a nonprofit organization. One engaged in both foreign and domestic relief operations. One that works smaller operations like local food drives, emergency shelter from extremes in heat and cold... One that's flexible enough to be called upon by the community to fill various roles as they come along. I still need to research the probabiliies vs. the possibilities on this. Anyway, doing so, in my limited understanding, would seem to open a wealth of resources in equipping and operating such a venture. Assuming my super trailer is realistic, it would also be extremely costly to assemble, and that's not even considering the products required to distribute basic necessities to survivors/ refugees, the fuel to get it to them, the cost of housing/ feeding volunteers themselves...

The tools and resources are out there to make much of this possible. I've seen facets of what I've discussed in many different areas. Its a matter of learning what to do, what works, and what doesn't. I saw on a banner ad here that at least one university offers emergency management courses. I never considered that possibility, but to further my own education I'll be looking now for a reputable school offering them.

By the way, I love how many things are bouncing around in my head at any given moment.

[LUNCHBOX]

I don't think I would attach the awning to the outside or any other items just due to you being on the road for possible long periods of time and having something come loose.

I would definately contact American Red Cross for any questions...they will know who to contact in your area for assistance.

I (as I'm sure you would) would beef up that 1st aid kit as well as get some local training. Your local fire department may offer classes (basics, first responder) Red Cross should be able to help you out here.

Maybe look in to some sponsers.....donations of gear/equipment.

Tools....now that you have been in there you have a good idea what you need but if your going to have a genny I would have a few sawsalls, nailguns, standard power tools.

As far as a 10 man team, that would be nice but maybe start at 4-6 due to issue with housing/feeding, just expenses in general. Of course if you get some $$$ help then go for it.

[timbow]

On the vehicle end of things, something along the lines of the Ford E250 or E350 would give you the towing capability for the trailer you are looking at. Unfortunately they don't do an OEM 4x4 version, which would be better for reaching back off road (however, I've seen some aftermarket versions).

While hunting int the UP of MI, I ran across a camp that had a couple of enclosed trailers that had aluminum bunks built in where the frames were pinned in place for sleeping and slid up or down the vertical rails for travel and gear hauling. This might be a consideration should there not be any local accommodations be available.

I heard the boys talking about modding the shower trailer to add laundry facilities. Keeping things modular might provide for customizing the unit for the situation.

Sorry for the shotgun approach to my thoughts, but that's how they come out most of the time.

Keep those things you got rattlin' around up there in your head rollin' - your on to something.

[bacpacker]

Rat you've got a great idea going. I'll give you a little background of what I have done and some ideas I had for our ham radio group. Hopefully you'll get an idea or two from it. Also any questions feel free to PM if you don't want to post them up, no problem.
I was the Emergency Coordinator of our local ARES/RACES (Amatuer Radio Emergency Service, nationwide group organized by the ARRL)/(Radio Amatuer Communications Emergency Service, nationwide group organized by FEMA/Local EMA and not as popular as it once was) for 11+ years. I just retired in Dec of 2010. This group was not an 501(c)3 group, but over time we started getting donations and grants from different organizations, so we started a seperate group as a 501(C)3 to handle the money. The reason for this was to reduce the liability of the radio group. That group was all volunteer and was covered by a good samaratin law in TN. The 501(c)3 was incorporated and it's sole purpose was to raise funds and equip the radio group. We was able to get a grant from CVS pharmacy pretty early on, most of the rest of the funds were donations from different public service events we helped by providing comms for over the years. My plan was to purchase a trailer, similar to the one you are looking at, for a mobile comm center at some point.
While planning the gear you want to haul, get specific weights for everything. I have found thru my own and other hams expereince putting together trailers that it is super easy to overload them if you don't pay very close attention to the limits. Your choice of gear sounds top notch, welder, compressor, toolbox, generator and work benches, plus LB's idea of power or battery powered tools would be very handy and useful.
Some other stuff to consider, chainsaws, which will require extra chains, bars, plugs, oil, fuel, & files. Shovels, axes, rakes, various other hand tools all in quantities to supply the # of folks who participate. Gloves, hard hats, saftey glasses, ear protection as well. Like LB said I would put in a large 1st aid kit as opposed to a individual one.
One last thing, you talked about a ham tower. I would recommend against that, due to weight and mounting concerns. We built some drive on mounts that will accept 1 or 2 10' sections of mast to mount our antenna's to. You can mount a rack on top of the trailer, some come with them, to load the mast on. You could also mount a large section of conduit or PVC to store your antenna's.
Best of luck with your endeavors. Let me know if I can help out, if possible from a distance.

[mitunnelrat]

LB, I never even considered the awning coming off, they're so common on RV's. My initial thought was a couple free standing canopies, but I felt something like this would cover a larger area without taking any space in the interior.

I personally love the Red Cross. I got first hand experience with their emergency communication service while I was stationed in Korea. I don't wish that on anybody, but I'm glad its there. It gave my mom somewhere to turn for reaching me, and set the ball rolling to get me home when my grandpa was diagnosed with cancer. I've been a volunteer for them before, was actually looking at doing so again, and can definitely get behind working with them on this project.

There's a local ambulance service that offers the first responder course, as well as that for EMT-B. My local community college has something as well. I'd have the EMT course under my belt already, but my work schedule hasn't allowed it. I figured an industrial kit would suffice until I could get myself and a few others trained in the use of a more comprehensive setup though.

Air and power tools were very much on my mind, especially the sawzalls and nailguns, along with some cutting tools for the compressor. Another major item I forgot to mention is an oxy-acetylene torch. I almost wrote a book on my first post, so it wasn't prudent to list all the tools I'm thinking, but maybe I should get that all in a post of its own to see what I've missed, should drop, and overall make it easier to determine quantities. Speaking of which, crew numbers also came up.

I think I could realistically sustain a 30 man pool of volunteers from the numbers I currrently have to work with. I heard from a man with some experience in this that a 10 man crew is about as large as you want to run at one time, hence my decision to stock the trailer for that number. I can see where some operations could be run with less, but I still want to develop resources for the ten.

tb, the Ford E-Series was my first thought, since that's what we used for Joplin. I saw in their specs they have different packages, and since I'm not a car guy I was naturally inclined to use a "Tim Taylor" method of selection and pick the most powerful... lol. Now that I'm looking closer though, I may not have many more options than that, and actually think the E350 Super Duty Extended would be the best choice. It has the most seating, which would be nice for regular use, and when its entered into service for transporting a crew it would have enough extra space for some personal gear or people to stretch out. The aftermarket 4x4 was a good call, thank you for mentioning it.

The bunk idea seems pretty cool, but I wonder if a stack of cots or a tote full of air mattresses and a small canvas wall tent wouldn't be a better option. I'd be able to set up a "base of operations" with it and have a fixed location for distributing goods if needed. Otherwise I think I'd have to sacrifice the pallet option to make the shelving/ bunks wide enough for comfortable use. I do agree that modularity and multi-purpose options are the way to go whenever possible though, you've hit two of my favorite considerations with that.

bp, thank you! Do you happen to have any pictures of the setup you're describing though? I'm having trouble visualizing some of it, specifically the drive on mount. I think your 501(c) parameters were also a very good idea. I'll make sure to include that as a possible option for it. You and LB both raised good points on sponsorships and donations too.

I'll definitely make sure I have the individual weights of everything I intend to load. The last thing I want to do is damage the trailer or a vehicle from overloading. Your point on that is valid for the tower idea too.

I've made sure to add these things to my notes, thanks for the input guys. I'll keep you updated and ask further questions as this develops.

[bacpacker]

I'll try and get some pics taken this weekend of the mast drive on mount. There are many ways to make them, mine is not able to be folder down flat, but it is as easy to make them foldable. I will also try and get some measurments and create a quick bill of material for it. Let me know of any other pics you would like. I used to keep all the groups gear here at the house, but since I retired it's now at someone else's. I could take some photo's of my gear however.

As far as the awning, I would check with the dealer and see if there is a option available for mounting one permanatly like on a camper. The trailers may not be constructed in such a way that it would be possible. The collapsable canopies are decent, but are not as good as a attached unit IMO.

A couple other thoughts. First from past work expereince as a supervisor on a manufacturing production line, if you have a crew of 10, with you leading for example, you need 2 leaders under you to split the crews in half. If the numbers go up to 30, I would have 4 leaders. from classes I took on leadership it was stressed to keep a supervisors numbers under 8 folks to keep things manageable. Plus with work crew, that many folks would most likely be sent multiple directions doing different things daily. Plus that would give you a chance to do some advance planning for the next day, meet with other folks, etc.

[mitunnelrat]

Thanks, bacpacker. Your help on the HAM setup is awesome! We're thinking pretty similarly on the work crews as well, except mine were broken down a bit further. One crew chief, three team leaders, and two workers under each TL. Most of the jobs I did involved most of the crew being at work, so where I think this would come in the most handy is if we jumped in for SAR directly after an event.

And yeah, its probably a good idea to see if there's a factory awning option over adding one myself.

[bacpacker]

Rat, here is some photo's (hopefully) I took of the drive on mast mount today. If these don't load correctly I'll try again. The mount is a drive on unit and would work well using this with a trailer setting on it.

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/th_100_3246.jpg (http://s1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/?action=view&current=100_3246.jpg)

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/th_100_3249.jpg (http://s1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/?action=view&current=100_3249.jpg)

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/th_100_3250.jpg (http://s1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/?action=view&current=100_3250.jpg)

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/th_100_3251.jpg (http://s1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/?action=view&current=100_3251.jpg)

http://i1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/th_100_3252.jpg (http://s1142.photobucket.com/albums/n607/bacpacker/Mast%20Mount/?action=view&current=100_3252.jpg)

I got several different shots of it and hope it shows the complete assembly. I will try and draw up a print a=with dimensions as soon as I have time. Both mount accept a 10' mast section that can be purchased at most radio shcks for around $20-30. I wouldn't stack more than 2 mast high with out running a 3 guy wire set up.

Let me know if you have any questions.

[mitunnelrat]

Oh! Now I get it! Thank you!

[TEOTWAWKI13]

Sorry to jump in on the tail end, and if I'm redundant I aplogize. If you're going to do a "non profit", do it right, so you get all the tax breaks. And instead of an awning, consider the large tent canopies that collapse down for storage. They're about 3-4 ft by 1 ft square when collapsed and stored away. We have them for my daughter's soccer games, and they're up and shade worthy in a few minutes.

If you had the funds, even a small RV style van would be a good set up as a command center.

[TroubleShooter]

My thoughts would lean toward an older semi with a mechanical diesel engine , pulling a set of pups..........each drybox would serve their own purpose . Housing for crew, and storage for tools and equipment......a PTO off of semi trans would drive air compressor and/or pump for fluids. Once the truck is in place the fuel tanks are your source of fuel for your equipment, no need to haul around additional tanks, can also place other tanks on truck if needed..........No worries about overloading, space or electrical malfunctions...........A loaded out E350 pulling a heavy trailer will not have as good fuel mileage as a maxed out semi of 80,000......

I knew there was a reason I should have took pics of that traveling school band's semi-trailer set-up......


Forgot...........cutting torch set-up , can use 50/50 oxygen / shop air , use gas or diesel for fuel
Petrogen Cutting Systems | Petrogen Home Page (http://www.petrogen.com/)

Just a few thoughts ..............Have many

[bacpacker]

Good idea you have there trouble shooter. A semi would take care of many of the issues related to a van/trailer combo as well as many others, not to mention almost unlimited weight capability. Big downside is the need to have at least 2 trained drivers.

[mitunnelrat]

The petrogen setup just drove any thoughts of oxy-acetylene out of my head. Very nice! Thank you.

As for the semi, its an awesome idea, but I didn't feel it was the best choice for the circumstances I envision. I saw one set up as a full tool shop in Joplin that was incredible, and I'd love to have something like it, but it still required support vehicles and smaller trailers to get the equipment to the job sites. The crew working from it came in no less than 4 passenger vehicles. That's a larger fuel and maintenance cost than one van and a trailer would accrue.

Then, as I indirectly mentioned, it just sits. Its one thing if its sitting near an active disaster zone while a crew is working I suppose, but the options for its storage in my area incur further cost while also being few and far between. The tool truck I mentioned got left in Joplin. I think due to that being the most cost effective option available. The thought behind my proposed setup is it can easily fit in numerous driveways/ backyards here, not to mention it doesn't have to sit as much. Both pieces are versatile enough to be pressed into numerous uses as needed, something I can easily see happening.

Definitely some awesome ideas and contributions, I'd love to hear more.

[TroubleShooter]

Ok...........I have already done what you want , just in a different field. First thing to determine is what platform you want all your tools to run from. Air, electric, or hydraulic. You are wanting to be fast and furious, but extremely efficient.....Is there a budget ? , You are only wanting to use one vehicle , correct? , will you need to carry your own fuel...? , Will your 10 man team be responsible for their own shelter and sleeping quarters..?

[mitunnelrat]

I haven't given too much thought to too many power tools, since working from the lowest common denominator means stocking heavier for an unskilled labor force, thus hand tools. In fact, I have zero experience with hydraulic tools, so I hadn't even considered them at all. I am looking at a combination of electric, air, and gasoline powered tools though. That's what I've worked with through my life, and also what I saw in action in Joplin. But then, most of their equipment was received through donations, which is how I want to set up myself.

So... No budget, I haven't collected enough information yet to determine how much of one I need.

One vehicle is correct, and the only fuel we need carry is that in small cans for use on job sites.

I'll have to find out about shelter needs from someone with more experience in disaster relief, but a canvas wall tent shouldn't be that hard to acquire if needed, and would be set up to accept a stove in cold conditions.

[mitunnelrat]

New update here:

We teamed up with the Poured Out organization, so the need for me to develop this on my own is moot. They already have the infrastructure and materials in place. Thanks for all of the help and ideas though. I took away several things I'll use for my own, personal setup.