Residents of areas that could be affected by a dam failure or operational incident have a risk of loss of life, injuries, and damage to property from a failure or operational incident. The purpose of this document is to provide guidelines for the preparation of an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) to facilitate the development of plans that are comprehensive and consistent. The purpose of an EAP is to protect lives and reduce property damage. The intended readers of this document are dam owners and emergency management authorities who work together in the response to dam safety emergencies. An EAP is a formal document that identifies potential emergency conditions at a dam and specifies actions to be followed to minimize loss of life and property damage. The EAP includes: Actions the dam owner will take to moderate or alleviate a problem at the dam Actions the dam owner will take, and in coordination with emergency management authorities, to respond to incidents or emergencies related to the dam