Clients

Seeking to define the increasing role of Transportation Management Centers (TMC) during Emergency Operations, the FHWA called on a team that included Fortress, which is now developing a Guidebook to document current TMC functions, their potential to support Emergency Operations Centers, and related changes and trends impacting TMCs.

Seeking to further integrate its Highway, Rail and Transit, Aeronautics, and RMV divisions and enhance emergency preparedness planning across the entire enterprise, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation tasked Fortress with assessing and developing recommendations regarding enhancements to the agency's emergency preparedness program.

Seeking to enhance and further integrate emergency preparedness planning across the transportation assets it operates, the Massachusetts Port Authority has tasked Fortress with surveying, assessing, and developing recommendations on advancing the Authority's emergency preparedness program and integrating its programs more closely with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.

The MassDOT I-93 Fast14 project is an accelerated bridge replacement project that involves an aggressively scheduled and intensely coordinated demolition and construction of 14 bridge spans over a period of ten weekends. Fortress led the contingency management and incident action planning for the project, a crucial effort aimed at recognizing and mitigating project issues with the potential to disrupt traffic.

The MBTA is currently considering the renovation of the unused and abandoned Broadway station into an advanced, highly functional regional transit security and emergency response training facility. To evaluate and justify this undertaking, the MBTA asked Fortress to assess the need for and potential of such a facility. Through interviews and documents, Fortress developed a two-part security and emergency preparedness assessment report.

Following on our previous work with the MTA (now part of MassDOT), Fortress was selected to continue developing an emergency preparedness exercise series. The project includes a series of seminars, workshops, and exercises, culminating in a full scale exercise, that focus on achieving consensus on issues such as determining the ideal incident command structure for a multi-location incident, locating the unified command center, and establishing an evacuation notification protocol across multiple agencies and jurisdictions.

In order to enhance the coordination and incident response between public safety and transportation agencies in Massachusetts, Fortress developed and conduct a customized, MassDOT-centric ICS-402 course to provide agency executives and senior leaders with a more advanced understanding of the Incident Command System.

To address new and ever-changing security & emergency preparedness challenges, the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority sought to assess its Emergency Management Program. They called on Fortress' Albert Samano to assess their existing program and revise/update or develop all the necessary plans, procedures, training and drills/exercises.

In an effort to actively improve its emergency preparedness systems and protocols, the Mas-sachusetts Turnpike Authority sought to ensure that their Emergency Management Plan was in compliance with the National Incident Management System (NIMS), a comprehensive national approach to incident management. To this end, it enlisted Fortress' Albert Samano, who conducted a NIMS assessment of the MTA using FEMA' s on-line NIMSCAST Self-Assessment Tool.

The MBTA sought to strengthen its emergency preparedness program by updating existing planning and incorporating new plans, procedures, and training. To this end, Fortress personnel assessed the MBTA' s compliance with industry regulations, revised the MBTA' s Continuity of Operations Plan and Emergency Operations Plans, and supported the development of new emergency response procedures and training.

During its construction, the Central Artery/Tunnel Project was the largest and most tech-nologically complex highway project in U.S. history. The Massachusetts Highway Department recognized the potential for incidents and emergencies on such a large transportation project and retained Fortress' Albert Samano to develop an emergency management program. Using our Security and Emergency Preparedness System™, Mr. Samano developed and implemented a comprehensive and project-wide emergency management program.

Fortress developed and conducted multi-hazard, multi-scenario incident management training for Troop E middle-level management personnel. Troop E conducted a series of Rapid Assessment Multiple Scenario (RAMS) Tabletop Exercises (TTX) to train all Sergeants and Lieutenants in the philosophy and content of the Troop E Supervisor's Handbook and its use in the control, command and coordination of highway incident scenarios occurring on the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Seeking to ensure continued safe and efficient operations during a major emergency, OCTA retained Fortress to conduct a comprehensive review of its emergency preparedness program to determine overall readiness, effectiveness, and compliance. To this end, Fortress personnel assessed OCTA's program, evaluated compliance with regulations and industry guidelines, and developed an emergency preparedness strategy based on gaps identified.

Designed, developed and conducted an Emergency Response drill to evaluate the Emergency Response Team's actions, assess the operability of the Departmental Operation Center and evaluate the overall adequacy of the Comprehensive Emergency Management Program. The Emergency Response drill included an integrated event timeline, mini scenarios and ten specific drill messages designed to test the operational knowledge and integrated response actions of the Emergency Response Team. In addition, a Drill report was developed which provided the specific findings for each area that was assessed and the recommendations for program improvement.

In view of recent hurricanes, Rhode Island was keenly aware of the need to update its hurricane evacuation plans. The RI Department of Transportation retained Fortress' Albert Samano to assist with this task. Using the RI Statewide Travel Demand Model, Mr. Samano evaluated evacuation routes under multiple scenarios and recommended implementation guidelines to improve evacuation times.

Seeking to improve their traffic incident management plans, RI-DOT called on Fortress' Albert Samano for assistance. Mr. Samano updated the RIDOT Traffic Incident Unified Response Manual, facilitated Traffic Incident Management Task Force meetings, and developed a hurri-cane-scenario tabletop exercise.

Seeking to test and validate a variety of joint agency tunnel emergency response plans and protocols, the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority selected Fortress to provide assistance in the design and development  of a series of targeted Tunnel Fire Incident Response Exercises utilizing the Metropolitan Highway Tunnel System.

Seeking to identify critical transportation assets under its jurisdiction, and to develop plans to enhance the security and protection of these assets, the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority turned to Fortress personnel. Fortress' Albert Samano proceeded to identify, survey, and inventory the agency's critical  assets and ultimately developed an agency-wide Mitigation Plan.