Conducts regular capability assessment of emergency service strengths and weaknesses and manages the ongoing progression (improvement) system necessary to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local standards for emergency/disaster capability.  Major duties include:

• Conducting a formal capability assessment to identify vital emergency services strengths and weaknesses in such vital areas as equipment, planning, training, and exercising as to provide for emergency/disaster strategic planning.

• Managing programs with the goal of meeting established local, state, and federal legislative and professional practice standards such as NFPA 1600, Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP), and National Incident Management System (NIMS).

Local Emergency Planning Team

Manages the jurisdiction’s primary emergency committee which is comprised of critical government, public, and private entities that are jointly tasked to ensure a communicated and coordinated approach to local emergency/disaster operations.  Major duties include: 

• Ensuring emergency/disaster coordination from critical entities including:  9-1-1, Fire Services, Law Enforcement, Emergency Medical Services, Public Health Organizations, Human Services/Welfare groups, public utilities, and other community officials

• Serving as the multi-agency coordination committee required under the following programs:  SARA Title III Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC); Homeland Security Grant Program Local Planning Team (L.P.T.); Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (DMA2K) Hazard Mitigation Committee; Homeland Security Exercise & Evaluation Program (H.S.E.E.P.) exercise committee

• Providing formal advisement to Chief Elected Official and Board Of Commissioners on community emergency/disaster related issues from all involved agencies

LEPT Meeting Schedule

Emergency Planning

Maintains the county’s emergency plan which is required by federal, state, and local legislation to accurately describe the agencies, procedures, and resources that will be utilized by the jurisdiction to manage major emergencies and disasters.  Major duties include: 

• Officially appointing government, public, and private officials/agencies to emergency/disaster responsibilities within the community

• Officially Identifying and assigning community resources (personnel, equipment, services, facilities, and information) necessary to emergency/disaster capability

• Officially designating emergency response strategies that will be utilized during emergency/disaster events

Site / Hazard Planning

Develops site and/or hazard specific plans and procedures to supplement the community emergency plan as to ensure an additional level of safety at high risk areas.  Major areas include:

• Maintaining all community Hazardous Materials site plans required by SARA III 302 and Community Right To Know legislation.  These and additional plans are developed to meet SARA III 312, MIOSHA HAZWOPER, and Michigan Firefighters Right To Know criteria as well. 

• Maintaining additional required plans including school response plan, wildfire response plan, dam failure response plan, scrap tire fire response plans, Severe Weather Response Plan

• Scrap tire fire response plans

 List of Hazardous Materials Sites

Muskegon River Dams Evacuation Plan

Resource Management

Maintains and manages community resources for capability to support local emergency/disaster responses.  Vital resources include:  personnel, equipment, facilities, services, and information.  Major duties include:

• Managing vital equipment that is utilized jointly by community agencies including: the CityWatch alert & notification system, the MPSCS radio system, Incident Command Unit vehicle, and the Emergency Operations Center

• Maintaining a database of resources to ensure the ease of use during emergency/disaster situations as required by the National Incident Management System (NIMS)

• Using existing information (i.e. capability assessments) to facilitate the establishment of new resources that support emergency/disaster capability

Hazard Management (Analysis & Mitigation)

Conducts a formal hazard analysis to identify potential natural, technological, and man-made emergencies and describe their probable effects.  Utilizing that information, manages community projects that permanently eliminates or reduces emergency threats to the jurisdiction.  Major duties include:

• Identifying the location and potential for all natural, technological, and man-made hazards within the jurisdiction and conducting a risk analysis describing their probable effects on the community

• Maintains a hazard mitigation plan that facilitates community disaster resistance through projects that eliminate or reduce potential emergency effects as required by the federal Hazard Mitigation Act of 2000

• Manages hazard mitigation projects such as improved equipment, hazard elimination/removal, and land use planning

Hazard Management Plan

Public Education

Maintains an ongoing education program to keep citizens and local community entities knowledgeable about emergency preparedness activities, resources, and recommendations through use of public presentations, education materials, websites, media articles, and other methods.  Major duties include: 

• Management of community outreach program that facilitates regular public emergency preparedness campaigns aimed at increasing community emergency readiness through media articles, websites, presentations, and education materials

• Providing community information during local, state, or national emergencies

Training

Develops and delivers training programs to community officials, agencies, and citizens on emergency/safety principles and practices.  Major duties include: 

• Conducting hazard specific training to community officials and citizens with the goal of ensuring effective and efficient emergency response actions

• Conducting skill specific training in incident command, National Incident Management System (NIMS), and hazard response techniques.

• Ensuring emergency officials are trained in assigned emergency plan responsibilities

Exercises

Designs and delivers practical exercises (tests) of the existing emergency program through delivery of orientation seminars, tabletop discussions, functional simulations, field drills, and full scale scenarios.  Major duties include:

• Ensuring a community-wide approach to exercising through annual scheduling and coordination of all formal government, public, and private exercises to meet Homeland Security Exercise Evaluation Program requirements

• Developing and designing exercise programs and activities to facilitate a multi-year progressive schedule of seminar, tabletop, drill, functional, and full-scale exercise events

• Evaluating community exercise activities and managing corrective actions to ensure that identified program strengths and weaknesses are adequately addressed

Response

Provides emergency response to unique and/or large emergencies requiring extraordinary coordination, expertise, and resources.  Major duties include:

• Ensuring implementation of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) as required by local, state, and federal directives.  This includes establishment of incident command and emergency operations center activities

• Ensuring the communications and coordination amongst all responding agencies and officials for an effective response effort

• Providing direction to the Chief Executive Official and emergency officials on emergency/disaster strategies including declaring of local state of emergency and requests for state assistance

Return to top of page

1018 Newell Street, P.O. Box 885
White Cloud, MI 49349
Telephone:  (231) 689-7354    Fax: (231) 689-7348    Pager:  (231) 837-0276