EM07-Early Warning System (Service Package*)

The following discusses how the National ITS Architecture provides the transportation service described by this service package. Each numbered item describes the operation of that portion of the service package identified with the corresponding number on the transaction set diagram.

1. The Emergency Management Subsystem detects major incidents and disasters that are reported by other agencies by monitoring and collecting information from:
   
   
• Alerting and Advisory Systems (alerts and advisories): This represents systems such as the Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs), the National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC), the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS), and other systems that provide intelligence about potential, imminent, or actual attacks on the transportation infrastructure or its supporting information systems.
  
  
• Other Emergency Management (incident report, threat information coordination): This represents local, regional, state, and federal public safety, emergency management, and other allied incident response agencies.
  
  
• Weather Service (weather information): Weather watches and warnings issued by the National Weather Service
  
  
• Surface Transportation Weather Service (transportation weather information). Weather information available through other specialized weather organizations; specific information may also be requested (transportation weather information request).
  
  
Each of these inputs are asynchronous and may occur concurrently; reports from individual systems may overlap. The Emergency System Operator monitors these inputs (emergency operations status) and identifies events that may be applicable to the region. All the numbered items below are controlled by the emergency system operator through asynchronous input from the Emergency System Operator (emergency operations inputs).


2. Early Warning Systems may be equipped with their own network of sensors and surveillance systems that provide additional intelligence of potential threats and status of reported incidents. The information supplied in the previous step may increase the alert level of the system. In response, the Emergency Management Subsystem can increase surveillance and sensor monitoring, for example by activating surveillance systems (secure area surveillance control) or adjusting the alarm thresholds of threat sensors (secure area sensor control). The returned data (secure area surveillance data, secure area sensor data) is processed by the Emergency Management Subsystem and presented to the Emergency System Operator (emergency operations status).
   
   
3. Asynchronously and concurrently with the previous steps, incident information is also reported to the Emergency Management Subsystem by transportation agencies:
   
   
• Traffic Management Subsystem (incident information)
  
  
• Maintenance and Construction Management Subsystem (incident information)
  
  
• Transit Management Subsystem (transit emergency data)
  
  
4. The compiled information on identified threats (threat information coordination) and major incidents (incident report) is shared with other Emergency Management Subsystems.
   
   
5. Incident information and threat information is also shared with transportation agencies – the Traffic Management Subsystem, Transit Management Subsystem, and Maintenance and Construction Management Subsystem. This information can be used to increase preparedness as threats are identified or initiate an emergency response when a major incident or disaster is actually detected.
   
   

Steps 1-5 illustrate the process where a regional early warning system collects available threat and incident information and provides an early warning service for transportation agencies in the region. Alternatively, or in addition to this approach, transportation agencies can also directly subscribe to and/or monitor alerts and advisories provided by Alerting and Advisory Systems such as the Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs), the National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC), and the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS). This direct input is shown in steps 6 through 8.

6. The Maintenance and Construction Management Subsystem monitors threat assessments, alerts, and advisories reported by the Alerting and Advisory Systems (alerts and advisories). These reports and the incident and threat information provided in step 5 are presented to Maintenance and Construction Center Personnel (maint and constr operations information presentation) who use this information to adjust system operation to increase preparedness and/or initiate an immediate response as appropriate (maint and constr center personnel inputs).
   
   
7. The Traffic Management Subsystem monitors threat assessments, alerts, and advisories reported by the Alerting and Advisory Systems (alerts and advisories). These reports and the incident and threat information provided in step 5 are presented to Traffic Operations Personnel (traffic operator data) who use this information to adjust system operation to increase preparedness and/or initiate an emergency response as appropriate (traffic operator inputs).
   
   
8. The Transit Management Subsystem also monitors threat assessments, alerts, and advisories reported by the Alerting and Advisory Systems (alerts and advisories). These reports and the incident and threat information provided in step 5 are presented to Transit Operations Personnel (transit operations status) who use this information to adjust system operation to increase preparedness and/or initiate an emergency response as appropriate (transit operations personnel inputs).
   
   The process associated with increasing preparedness and responding to the threat or actual emergency based on the early warning is covered under market packages EM05: Transportation Infrastructure Protection and EM08: Disaster Response and Recovery.