Regional Emergency Preparedness Task Force
Emergency preparedness means being ready to handle any kind of unplanned event that disrupts everyday life, from brief power outages to floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards, epidemics, hazardous materials incidents, and terror attacks.
After 9/11, BMC's Board of Directors convened a Regional Emergency Preparedness Task Force to consider nine areas: sheltering; water supply safety; interoperability of communications systems; debris management and disposal; transportation, including evacuation plans; public health; fire; police; and public information. The committees reported their findings to the BMC Board of Directors in October, 2002.
The Task Force noted that much had been accomplished since 9/11. For example:
- The Red Cross established a training institute to develop disaster management teams.
- The Baltimore City Department of Public Works took immediate steps to secure treatment plants and access to reservoirs and dams.
- The Northeast Maryland Waste Disposal Authority began drafting a regional emergency debris management plan.
- The Baltimore region received $2.7 million in federal funds to enhance public health capabilities.
- The Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Council implemented a Disaster Committee with subcommittees on resources, fire service presence at MEMA’s Emergency Operations Center, and the deployment of personnel and equipment, and also produced an inventory of resources for fire, EMA and rescue operations.
- Police departments purchased additional equipment and participated in multi-agency tabletop and field exercises.
- Anne Arundel County produced a "Guide to Emergency Preparedness," which was mailed to each household in the county.
The recommendations included:
- Promoting the concepts of household preparedness and self-sufficiency for the first 72 hours of an emergency
- Identifying and preparing additional public shelter sites
- Enhancing real-time monitoring of the water supply
- Working toward the development of a communications network that will serve state and local public safety agencies, as well as agencies from other states and the federal government
- Completing and securing approval of a debris management plan
- Developing a regional transportation emergency preparedness plan
- Holding coordination meetings for state and local health department personnel
- Developing response mechanisms for multiple, concurrent incidents
- Conducting regional drills and exercises, and providing training on terrorism and incident management
- Improving the sharing of information between federal, state and local agencies
- Reviewing and improving the Emergency Alert System
- Signing a new mutual aid agreement for emergency services
Links within this web site:
Emergency Coordination in Transportation
Urban Area Work Group
Mutual Aid Agreement
Radio Communications
Last Updated: 12/05/2008