Emergency Management

Mission Statement

We strive to provide proactive emergency management for our citizens, employers, and visitors that enhances their safety before, during, and following a disaster, minimizes property loss, damages and economic hardship, and facilitates the return to normalcy both in the short term and long term recovery. We will accomplish this by focusing on the five core components of a comprehensive emergency management program:

• Prevention focuses on preventing, avoiding, or stopping human hazards, primarily from potential natural disasters or terrorist (both physical and biological) attacks. Preventive measures are designed to provide more permanent protection from disasters; however, not all disasters can be prevented. The risk of loss of life and injury can be limited with good evacuation plans, environmental planning and design standards.
• Protection involves safeguarding the homeland against acts of terrorism and manmade natural disasters. It focuses on actions to protect our people, our vital interests, and our way of life.
• Response is comprised of the coordination and management of resources (including personnel, equipment, and supplies) utilizing the Incident Command System in an all-hazards approach; and measures taken for life/property/environmental safety. The response phase is a reaction to the occurrence of a catastrophic disaster or emergency.
• Recovery consists of those activities that continue beyond the emergency period to restore critical community functions and begin to manage stabilization efforts. The recovery phase begins immediately after the threat to human life has subsided. The goal of the recovery phase is to bring the affected area back to some degree of normalcy.
• Mitigation is the effort to reduce loss of life and property by lessening the impact of disasters and emergencies. Mitigation involves structural and non-structural measures taken to limit the impact of disasters and emergencies. Structural mitigation actions change the characteristics of buildings or the environment; examples include flood control projects, raising building elevations, and clearing areas around structures. Non-structural mitigation most often entails adopting or changing building codes.

We will further our success by building and fostering relationships with all the departments and city officials throughout the county as well with our regional partners that will be mutually beneficial for everyone involved without infringing upon the autonomy of each entity. It is through these partnerships that we will nurture an environment of trust, respect, cooperation, and coordination that will translate into success during all phases of emergency management.

Vision Statement

Ellis County Office of Emergency Management will utilize a proactive, all hazards approach to develop a comprehensive emergency management program.

This will be accomplished by the application of science, planning, technology, best practices, and management to coordinate an effective response to events that can injure or kill large numbers of people, do extensive damage to property, or disrupt community life.

Partnerships

The emergency management program will be greatly enhanced with strong partnerships not only with jurisdictions within the county, but by productive partnerships with volunteer agencies such as the American Red Cross, Salvation Army, VOAD, RACES, and with our colleagues throughout the region.

By accomplishing this, we will become a model of success for our county and the North Central Texas region as well as the state.