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NOTICE:
The International Emergency Management Society's Transportation Saftey and Security Workshop Janurary 28-29th 2003
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Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and
Risk Management
Crisis and Emergency Management
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NOTICE: The ICDRM's monthly emergency managment forum, held at the GWU |
| December
2002
Volume 3 - Number 3 |
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Links:
Current events
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An Overview of the Prince George’s County (MD)
Office of Emergency Preparedness & Emergency Management Director
By Thomas Ruffini
Reginald A. Parks holds the title of Director, Office of Emergency Preparedness (OEP), Prince George’s County, Maryland. It is the duty of the Director to oversee the operations of the OEP, which include providing for the preparation and carrying out of plans for the defense of persons and property within Prince George’s County during times crisis and disaster. The OEP was created by, and maintains its authority through, Subtitle 16 of the County Charter. This authority mimics that of the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) – the State level Emergency Management office – that gets its authority from Article 16-A of the Annotated Code of Maryland. This Article creates MEMA and authorizes the political subdivisions of the state, such as Prince George’s County, to create emergency management offices of their own. As proven on September 11, 2001, Prince George’s County can be directly and indirectly susceptible to enemy attacks, sabotage, and other hostile actions. Even more probable are the multitude of natural disasters that could affect the area at any time – floods, fires, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, or other natural events. It is the responsibility of the OEP to coordinate the defense of the County with all public agencies and their various departments, with other Counties, cities and political divisions, and with private agencies, organizations, persons and corporations of every type to insure the complete and efficient utilization of all facilities available to combat any disaster or emergency. The OEP, led by Director Parks, is responsible for coordinating the emergency response of the County government during times of crisis or disaster. OEP prepares and maintains contingency plans for disaster response, responds to emergency needs on a 24-hour basis, coordinates State and Federal financial assistance and executes applications for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assistance. The OEP staffs and operates the County’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) which is used as the command post for the County whenever there is a serious incident or unusual weather phenomenon. During a period of attack or natural disaster, the OEP will act as the instrument through which the County Executive (Wayne K. Curry; County Executive Elect Jack Johnson) may exercise the authority and discharge the responsibilities vested in him by Subtitle 16. It also serves as the link for the County Executive to reach to Governor of Maryland, for State level assistance during an event that exceeds the County’s response capabilities. The OEP successfully accomplishes its mission through a comprehensive, risk-based emergency management program of mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. The Director of the OEP is responsible to oversee these programs, and insure that the County is always ready to respond to aid its citizens. ----- Information for this article was obtained from following resources: The Prince George’s County Government: http://co.pg.md.us The Prince George’s County Executive Branch: http://www.mdarchives.state.md.us Maryland Emergency Management Agency: http://www.mema.state.md.us |