FIRE DEPARTMENT •TOWN OF NORTH BRANFORD, CT
MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TOWN OF NORTH BRANFORD
AND
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A. Each of the parties owns and maintains equipment for fire suppression, rescue, hazardous materials response and for providing emergency medical services. Each of the parties also retains personnel trained to provide various levels of fire, hazardous materials response and emergency medical service.
B. In the event of a major fire, disaster, or other emergency, the parties may require the assistance of one or more other parties to provide additional fire control and emergency medical service equipment and personnel.
C. Each of the parties has the necessary equipment and personnel to enable it to provide assistance to the other parties in the event of such an emergency.
D. The geographical location of all parties is within Spokane County, State of Washington, enabling each party to render effective mutual aid assistance to the others.
For the purpose of securing to each the benefits of mutual aid in the protection of life and property for fire and other emergency or disaster, and in consideration of the benefits to be received by each, the parties hereto mutually agree as follows:
1. Request for Assistance
The commanding officer of any party city or fire district is authorized to request assistance from the other parties if confronted with an emergency situation requiring equipment or personnel in excess of that available.
(a) Request for assistance shall be made only by the officer in charge of the requesting party or at his specific direction, and shall be directed to the officer in charge of or authorized to dispatch equipment outside of the area of the responding party, or shall be immediately referred to that officer for decision as to the assistance to be given in response to the request.
(b) A request for assistance shall specify the amount and type of equipment and number of personnel required, and shall specify the location to which the equipment and personnel are to be dispatched.
(c) Requests for assistance shall be made to the nearest party with the amount and type of equipment and number of personnel required. Move-up may be utilized to assure continuity of protection to all areas.
2. Response to Request
(a) Upon receipt of a request for mutual aid assistance, the commanding officer of the party receiving the request shall:
(1) Determine if the equipment and personnel are available for response as requested;
(2) Advise the requesting party of the equipment and personnel available for response and the response time;
(3) Dispatch requested personnel and equipment as available to the designated location(s) with proper operating instructions.
(b) The rendering of assistance under the terms of this Agreement shall not be mandatory, but the party receiving the request for assistance shall immediately inform the requesting party if for any reason assistance can not be rendered.
3. Pre-Emergency Planning
The commanding officers of the parties shall, from time to time, mutually establish pre-emergency plans which shall indicate the types and locations of potential problem areas where emergency assistance may be needed, and the type of equipment and number of personnel which should be dispatched under various circumstances. Such plans shall consider and assure the proper protection by the responding party of its own geographical area.
4. Preplanned Resources
Fire resources may be preplannedd through alarm assignments which utilize nearest resources, including those of adjacent jurisdictions by mutual agreement of the parties. In such event, the preplanned resources, if available, shall be automatically dispatched. Preplanned resources may also be utilized for moveup coverage.
5. Connecticut State Fire Rescue Response Plan
The Spokane County Fire Resource Plan as presently adopted or hereafter amended by the Inland Empire Fire Chiefs Association is hereby adopted into and made a part of this Agreement, and requests for assistance for any incident requiring resources beyond either the preplanned Third Alarm or a total of fifteen single resources shall, be made in accordance with said Fire Resource Plan.
6. Status of Equipment and Personnel
(a) Parties shall own or be legally responsible for all equipment used in carrying out this Agreement.
(b) All personnel acting for any party under this Agreement shall be employees or volunteer members of the party at the time of such action.
7. Command Responsibility
The incident command responsibility shall be determined by:
(1) The North Branford Fire Department Incident Command System, which provides that the agency(ies) with jurisdiction shall have incident command of all incident-resources, and
(2) The Spokane County Fire Resource Plan, as presently adopted or hereafter amended by the Inland Empire Fire Chiefs Association, provided, that the responding equipment and personnel shall be-under the immediate supervision of the officer in charge of the responding unit. The Spokane County Fire Resource Plan provides for the delegation of overall command of all fire resources to Area Command in large scale emergency situations requiring numerous fire resources.
B. Termination of Service
The equipment and personnel of the responding party shall be released from service and returned to the responding city of fire district by the incident commander when no longer required or when needed in the area for which it normally provides protection.
9. Liability and Claims
(a) Each party shall be responsible for its own equipment and personnel used in providing assistance pursuant to this Agreement. Each party waives all claims against the other party for compensation for any loss, damage, personal injury, or death occurring as a consequence of the performance of this Agreement.
(b) Each party shall be responsible for all liabilities that may occur or arise in any way out of the performance of this Agreement by its personnel only. Each party agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the other parties, and their employees and officials, against any and all claims of every kind and nature, including but not limited to costs, expenses, losses, damages, and costs of legal defense, incurred as a result of any act or omission of the employees of the party or persons acting in their behalf arising out of or relating to the performance of this Agreement.
10. Compensation
Each party agrees that it will not seek compensation for services rendered under this Agreement from any other party.
11. Non-Exclusive Agreement
The parties to this Agreement shall not be precluded from entering into similar agreements, or first or supplemental response agreements, with other municipal corporations.
The provisions of any other agreement by a party to this Agreement shall not extend to the other parties to this Agreement.
12. Duration and Termination
This Agreement shall become effective for each party upon the date of subscription hereto and shall remain in force and effect until participation is terminated by giving to the other. parties thirty (30) days notice of termination in writing.