"....2007....marked the beginning of a new thrust area for DRC [Disaster Research Center] as we launched our Disaster Emergency Planning Initiative. This initiative is aimed at using best practices from emergency management and insights from disaster research to help small communities plan for disaster response. Our initial project in this area was with the small Delaware community of Delaware City. After acquiring Department of Homeland Security funding to update and improve its emergency operations plan (EOP), the community contracted with the Disaster Research Center to request consultation services during the creation of their plan. In order to provide this outreach service, DRC applied expertise in the social science of disasters and research findings in order to create a document that not only meets the technical needs of Delaware City, but also takes into account a number of important principles of emergency management as discussed in the disaster research field. The following issues are the key elements that drove our approach to the creation of this document: "All Hazards" Oriented While different hazards (e.g. hurricane, flood, chemical release) will create different needs, planning under the constraints of a real world budget cannot account for every possibility. As a result, it is important to identify high probability events and plan more extensively for these, but it is also vital to create a model of response that attends to the many tasks that might be performed in any type of event. Community Tailored While the basic elements of formal emergency plans are fairly similar across communities that have engaged in planning activities, it is important to recognize that these plans are not simply interchangeable. It is extremely important to understand community demographics, resources, and special needs if an emergency plan is to be successful in making responses better. By taking into account the characteristics of the community, we can reduce unknowns and increase the appropriateness and rapidity of disaster response. Moving Towards an Integrated Network. It is well documented that planning is most effective when it is integrated rather than fragmented. Given this reality we need to understand this plan as a way of linking together both private and public organizations and people that will likely perform disaster related tasks in this community. By brining together these groups we can facilitate the pooling of collective strengths and capacities.... "Living Document" As Clarke points out in his book Mission Improbable, "Some plans are highly instrumental, but others are little more than vague hopes of remote futures with no connection to human will or capacity". This suggestion serves as a powerful warning to all who engage in planning activities. Creating a book, document, or plan is simply the beginning of the process. As suggested by many organizational and disaster specialists true preparedness as the planning community become more like a high-reliability system with a constant reflective capacity. In essence, focus on "planning" rather than "the plan". Such systems thrive through constant communication, self questioning, and adaptation. It is the Center's hope that this plan will become a living document that is revisited, revised, and constantly questioned. As a result a number of discussions were facilitated and suggestions made which were intended to help encourage the plan's evolution. In essence the "plan" is only half as important as the planning process. The former creates a document; the latter builds knowledge, creates familiarity, and leads to education". (DRC, 2007 Annual Report, p. 43)