The Department of Emergency Management has numerous duties with regards to disaster and other large scale emergency preparedness.
Central to these duties, is a living document called the Emergency Management Plan (EMP). This document contains several hundred pages of plans, procedures, maps and other supporting documents outlining various responses and procedures to be implemented in the event of a disaster. This document must meet very specific criteria as directed by the
Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) in Austin, and is reviewed and approved by that agency.
Once approved by TDEM, the EMP requires constant maintenance as resources, population, equipment, facilities and other such variables change. The responsibility for plan maintenance is given to the
Emergency Management Coordinator (EMC). A deputy EMC works hand in hand to insure constant compliance and a constant state of readiness. This involves frequent interaction with all public safety agencies, health agencies, hospitals, industry and other organizations.
The EMP is a general guide for all phases of emergency management, from Pre-Incident Mitigation, to Response and eventually to the Recovery phase. City staffers work to prepare the
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and train personnel to work in implementing the EMP in the event of extreme emergency or disaster.