Turning islands into bridges: Communitybased response after a catastrophic earthquake

The workforce rallying point model is intended to activate within the first 24 hours after a catastrophic earthquake. Its purpose is to provide employees with access to critical information and early response assignments following a Cascadia subduction zone-type event. The consequences from a catastrophic event could include loss of communication with departmental leadership, as well as loss of safe worksite facilities. A systems failure of this magnitude requires rethinking traditional centralised disaster response models. Building from lessons learned in past catastrophes, the City of Seattle is rewriting its earthquake response plan to account for an unknown period of isolation. The Seattle Office of Emergency Management has identified eight sites as potential workforce rallying points based on anticipated impacts to bridges, roadways and other infrastructure. Workforce rallying points serve four primary purposes: (1) citywide communications connectivity for consequence management activities, (2) City of Seattle staff collection and assignment points, (3) impact assessment and reporting hubs, and (4) public information distribution points, including the availability of in-language community messaging. The new plan embraces decentralised decision making, through workforce rallying points, and by supporting community empowerment through spontaneous community response efforts.