As a former United States Air Force Readiness Troop (formerly known as "Disaster Preparedness" and, I think, now known as "Emergency Management"), AFSC 3E9X1, part of the Disaster Response Force within Civil Engineering Squadron's "Prime BEEF" (Base Emergency Engineer Force), and having trained heavily with RED HORSE, I was exposed to quite the gamut of "Full-Spectrum Threat Response Plans". I could go on ad nauseam about the myriad of tasks and responsibilities affiliated with this career field, but I wont. Specifically, this is about the process of performing a Risk Assessment and Hazard Analysis.

I'm sure as many experts in their own fields can relate: when consulting with clients, many times they are confronted with a mentality involving those wanting to be spoon-fed instructions and to simply have someone tell them how to do things. This isn't a healthy paradigm for learning, as it fails to take into account the varied circumstances and different types of need which exists between individuals. We have to assess our own situations, capabilities and thusly fulfill our own particular needs. As the line goes, "Give a man a fish, and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and feed him for a lifetime." What I'm going to attempt with this article is to assist in determining our needs based on a fairly simple process and subsequently attempt to safeguard the fulfillment of those needs.