Shelter-in-Place - A common procedure implemented in the event of a chemical or radioactive release that involves taking immediate shelter, sealing up windows and doors and turning off air ducts.
Single Resource - An individual, a piece of equipment and its personnel complement, or a crew/team of individuals with an identified work supervisor that can be used on an incident.
Situation Report - According to FEMA, “Confirmed or verified information regarding the specific details relating to an incident.”
Span of Control - According to FEMA, “The number of resources for which a supervisor is responsible, usually expressed as the ratio of supervisors to individuals. Under the National Incident Management System, an appropriate span of control is between 1- 3 and 1- 7, with optimal being 1- 5, or between 1- 8 and 1- 10 for many large-scale law enforcement operations.”
Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) - Locations where 100-year floods and damaging waves can be expected. The National Flood Insurance Program's (NFIP’s) floodplain management regulations must be enforced in SFHAs, and flood insurance purchase is mandatory.
Special Needs Population - A population whose members may have additional needs before, during, and after an incident in functional areas such as communication, transportation, supervision and medical care. Individuals to consider in the special needs population may include those with disabilities, who have limited English proficiency or are transportation disadvantaged.
Specialized Procedures - Standardized actions for specific populations or situations during an incident or emergency. Examples include special needs population, continuity of operations, mass care and psychological healing.
Spontaneous Volunteer - Ordinary, untrained citizens who “self-dispatch” and arrive on-site to help after a disaster; they are not supervised by any organization. Localities often manage spontaneous volunteers through a Volunteer Reception Center, where volunteers can be credentialed and trained. Also known as unaffiliated volunteers.
Staging Area - Any location where personnel, supplies and equipment can be temporarily housed or parked while awaiting operational assignment.
Standard Operating Guidelines - According to FEMA, “A set of instructions having the force of a directive, covering those features of operations which lend themselves to a definite or standardized procedure without loss of effectiveness.”