Facility Emergency Closure Guidelines

IM-AK-2013-005
Instruction Memorandum

United States Department of the Interior
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
Alaska State Office
222 West Seventh Avenue, #13
Anchorage, Alaska 99513-7504
http://www.blm.gov

In Reply Refer To:
1112 (950) P

Instruction Memorandum No. AK 2013-005
Expires: 9/30/2014 January 22, 2013

To: All Employees

From: State Director

Subject: Facility Emergency Closure Guidelines

Program Area: Safety

Purpose: This IM clarifies how closures of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Alaska State Office affect the closure status of other BLM offices in Alaska, establishes procedures and minimum requirements for closures of BLM-Alaska facilities statewide, and renews our longstanding requirement that each office maintains an effective means of communicating critical information to their employees during an emergency.

Background: The State Director has the authority to close any or all BLM offices in the state, should such action be required to ensure employee safety and security. The senior manager of each BLM-Alaska field facility similarly has the authority to order a facility closed, should a localized situation warrant such action to ensure the safety and security of the employees at that facility.

Emergency facility closures may consist of delayed openings, early closures, or all day closures. For the purposes of this policy, they will simply be collectively referred to as “closures.”

Decisions to close the Anchorage Federal Building/United States Courthouse (AFB/USCH) are determined during consultations between the Federal Protective Service, District Courts, U.S. Marshalls, General Services Administration (GSA) and the primary federal agency tenants in the facility, including the Bureau of Land Management. An informational message about the nature and extent of the closure is then recorded to the AFB/USCH building information hotline at (907) 566-0023.

As a tenant of the AFB/USCH, the BLM-Alaska cooperates with those decisions by delaying or ceasing routine operations of the Alaska State Office (AKSO) during the designated closure periods.

The possible reasons for AFB/USCH closures are numerous, but the critical factor for the purposes of this policy is the scope of the disruption. In this context, there are two categories of scope:

  • Citywide disruptions, such as severely bad weather, extremely unsafe roads, earthquake damage, volcanic eruptions, etc.
  • Localized disruptions affecting only the AFB/USCH facility or the immediate downtown area, such as a hazardous materials spill, a localized power outage, a building security issue, etc.

Policy. Whether or not employees can assume that the Pipeline Monitoring Branch (PMB) and the Campbell Tract Facility (CTF) will automatically close to match AFB/USCH closures will be based upon whether the disruption leading to the closure is citywide or localized in nature. In the case of a citywide disruption, such as extremely unsafe road conditions caused by bad weather, the determination to declare a closure of the AFB/USCH will apply to the other BLM offices in Anchorage; this avoids the need to have all three offices making independent closure decisions based on conditions common to the entire city. In the case of a localized disruption at the AFB/USCH, such as a building power failure, there is generally no reason to close other BLM offices that are unaffected. Similarly, there’s rarely any reason to close BLM offices in Fairbanks or Glennallen when conditions at any of our Anchorage offices necessitates an emergency closure, or vice versa.

The following policies will apply to BLM-Alaska facility closures:

  • Facility managers exercising their authority to close their facility will notify the State Director, Associate State Director, and State Safety Manager of their action as soon as it is practical and safe to do so.
  • The State Director or his staff will report BLM facility closures in Alaska to the BLM Directorate as soon as it is practical and safe to do so.
  • The operational status of BLM offices located in Glennallen and Fairbanks will not be affected by AKSO closures resulting solely from Anchorage area conditions or localized AFB/USCH building issues.
  • The AFB/USCH hotline number is 566-0023.
  • If an AFB/USCH hotline message is posted by 5:00 A.M. to announce a building closure caused by a citywide condition, the employees of the PMB and CTF offices will assume that the same type and duration of closure is also in effect at their facilities, and no further activity is required on the part of PMB and CTF managers to provide additional closure information for their respective facilities.
  • If an AFB/USCH hotline message is posted at any time to announce a building closure caused by a localized (downtown Anchorage) or facility-specific issue, employees of the PMB and CTF offices will assume that their offices will be open for business as usual.
  • If a PMB or CTF employee hears a public service announcement of an AFB/USCH closure on local media broadcasts, but is uncertain as to the scope or cause of the closure, they should call the AFB/USCH building closure hotline, at 566-0023 to determine whether the closure is the result of a citywide problem or a local disruption. The hotline message will state the scope of the disruption.
  • Each BLM-Alaska field facility manager will ensure that a functioning and reliable system is provided and maintained (such as an employee information hotline or a calldown tree) to inform their employees about building closures or other emergency situations. Each BLM-Alaska field facility manager will issue an Instructional Bulletin (IB) to their employees to explain the function and use of their office’s emergency communications system, including instructions on how to access its information. Each IB will designate specific employees to enter timely and accurate information, including a sufficient number of alternates to ensure that the responsibility is reliably accomplished.
  • Generally, the preferred procedure for road conditions that severely deteriorate after the workday begins is to grant liberal leave so employees who wish to depart early and avoid rush hour traffic may do so.
  • All facility managers have the authority to designate essential personnel to remain at, or travel to, their facilities during emergency closures. Mission essential personnel are those who are either specifically identified as such in an emergency response plan, or those who are otherwise determined by their managers to be indispensable to their office’s efforts to reestablish basic operational functions after a closure or other disruption.
  • A bureau-level employee emergency contact system is scheduled to be implemented sometime in fiscal year 2013. Until the functional activation of that system occurs, all offices will continue to maintain accurate and updated branch, division, or facility-level employee emergency contact directories sufficient to allow all employees to be contacted at their homes to receive emergency instructions and/or information from their manager or supervisor.

Timeframe: Immediate, through September 30, 2014, or until superseded by subsequent guidance.

Budget Impact: No direct impact.

Coordination: Office managers will coordinate with one another in regards to closures when that is necessary to ensure the safety of BLM-Alaska employees.

Contact: If you have any questions or need more information, please contact your office manager, or the BLM-Alaska State Safety Manager, at 907-271-6370.

Signed by:
Bud Cribley
Alaska State Director

Authenticated by:
Anita R. Jette
Records Specialist

Office

Alaska State Office

Fiscal Year

2013