1.1 This guide covers the planning, needs assessment, training, integration, coordination, mutual aid, implementation, provision of resources, and evaluation of the response of a local emergency medical service (EMS) organization or agency to a multiple patient producing situation that may or may not involve property loss. This guide is limited to the pre-hospital response and mitigation of an incident up to and including the disposition of patients from the incident scene.

1.2 This guide addresses the background on planning, scope, structure, application, federal, state, local, voluntary, and nongovernmental resources and planning efforts involved in developing, implementing, and evaluating an EMS annex, or component, to the local jurisdiction's emergency operations plan (EOP) as defined in the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) publication, Civil Preparedness Guide (CPG) 1-8.

1.3 This standard does not purport to address the safety concerns associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.