Anchorage's rewritten emergency plan adds six annexes, voids all earlier versions

Anchorage's disaster response has run since June on a rewritten emergency plan that cancels every earlier version. Mayor Suzanne LaFrance signed it on June 22. The Assembly receives it Tuesday for information.

LaFrance promulgated the Comprehensive Emergency Operations Plan under Anchorage Municipal Code 3.80 and Alaska Statute 26.23.060. The plan directs how the Municipality prepares for, responds to and recovers from disasters. It "supersedes any previously promulgated emergency operations plan," according to the memorandum going to the Assembly on Tuesday, Sept. 1, for informational review rather than a vote.

The memorandum links the rewrite to the Municipality's record of five declared local emergencies since 2018, without stating that record caused the update. LaFrance wrote that the plan "brings us into compliance with national accreditation standards in several areas of emergency management" and meets the requirements of the National Incident Management System, the federal framework for standardized incident command.

Alaska Statute 26.23.060 requires each political subdivision to maintain a written disaster emergency plan with a clear statement of the responsibilities of all local agencies and officials, and requires plans covering hazardous substance releases to use an incident command system comparable to the state's.

The plan's own record of changes lists 34 entries made between June 2024 and June 2026, most by OEM planner Sean MacKenzie and several citing Emergency Management Accreditation Program standards. OEM Director Amanda Loach approved the memorandum. The update added six new annexes: agriculture and natural resources, critical infrastructure, food and water, volunteers, prevention and resource management.

"The next update to the CEOP will have the following additional hazards: Tsunami, Communicable Diseases, and Air Pollution," the plan says. Its hazard appendices now run through volcano and wildfire.

The memorandum presents only the administration's account. It contains no response from Assembly members or from the community organizations the plan assigns roles to. The signed plan is posted on the OEM website.