6-105 - Requesting National Guard Assistance

Policy

When a natural disaster, civil disorder or other emergency requires assistance beyond the capabilities of local law enforcement agencies, military assistance from the Minnesota National Guard may be requested using the following procedures:

1. The on-scene Incident Commander will notify the Emergency Operations Center Commander of the need for additional military assistance. If the Emergency Operations Center Commander concurs with the request, the Emergency Operations Commander will telephone the Minnesota 24 hour Duty Officer and request assistance of the Minnesota National Guard, describing the situation and the intended role of National Guard personnel with instructions for reporting to a staging area.
2. The Emergency Operations Center Commander must then notify the Mayor that the request for assistance was made and notify the on-scene Incident Commander the request was forwarded.
3. The verbal request made to the Minnesota Duty Officer must be followed by a written request signed by the Mayor.
4. The National Guard assistance must not be requested until all other Mutual Aid resources have been utilized. When dispatched to provide assistance, the National Guard will provide a liaison officer to coordinate the activities of the National Guard with the on-scene Incident Commander.

• Incident Commander:

  The Incident Commander (IC) is the first officer or supervisor to arrive on the scene of a call for service where multiple units, scenes, or assisting agencies are dispatched. The Incident Commander has overall command of the incident, until properly relieved by a supervisor of higher rank if necessary, and will be based at the incident command post. The priorities of the Incident Commander include:

  1. Assess incident priorities.
  2. Determine strategic goals and tactical objectives, not related to the operations of SWAT or ESU personnel.
  3. Identify a staging area, if needed.
  4. Develop and implement incident action plan.
  5. Develop appropriate incident management structure.
  6. Assess resource needs.
  7. Coordinate overall on-scene emergency activities.
  8. Authorize information to be released to the media.
• Limited English Proficiency: Designates individuals whose primary language is not English and who have a limited ability to read, write, speak, or understand English. LEP individuals may be competent in certain types of communication (e.g. speaking or understanding), but still be LEP for other purposes (e.g. reading or writing). Similarly, LEP designations are context specific. An individual may possess sufficient English language skills to function in one setting, but may find these skills are insufficient in other situations.