Problem
Smith County, a rural area located 100 miles from the city of Littletown, has a population of 75,000. In general, Smith County is a quiet and peaceful place for the local fire, emergency medical services (EMS), and police. The greatest challenge occurs early every summer when severe thunderstorms roll through the area. One day in mid-May, the National Weather Service issues a severe thunderstorm warning for four counties, including Smith County, at about 4:00 pm At 6:17 pm, a funnel cloud is sighted by Deputy Williams of the Smith County Police. The direction of travel places the 900 citizens of Stadtown in the path of the funnel cloud. At 6:21 pm, Stadtown is struck by an F4 tornado, which completely levels the downtown shopping district and the majority of residential properties. The damage to Stadtown is confirmed by Deputy Williams, who arrives on the scene within 2 minutes.
a) Should an incident management system be used to handle this situation?
b) What response agencies and disciplines will likely be needed to successfully respond to the disaster at Stadtown?