Emergency Management

Hamilton County Emergency Management (HCEM) is a county department that is required by federal, state, and local laws. HCEM maintains critical plans and procedures for the county's emergency response. HCEM provides coordination and support, while building and maintaining relationships with local and state agencies, private sector partners, and non-governmental organizations such as the Community Organizations Active in Disasters (COAD).

HCEM Volunteers play an important role in outreach by helping promote individual, family, and community preparedness. We foster a constant state of readiness throughout the county. 

Our volunteer programs are designed to help further HCEM's mission of providing support to plan, prepare, mitigate, respond to, and recover from natural, human-caused, and accidental hazards. Opportunities would include assisting at community outreach events, providing support in the community during emergencies, and contributing to the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) during a disaster.

HCEM is proud to have five volunteer programs: CERT, Comms Group, EOC Volunteers, Logistic Volunteers, and Reservists.

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) is a program that educates volunteers about disaster preparedness for the hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations.

The Communications Group (formerly known as RACES) is an organization of skilled communicators who volunteer for Emergency Management. They provide tactical emergency support communications to federal, state, and local governments during emergencies, supplementing, augmenting, or replacing radio communications wherever and whenever needed.

Emergency Operation Center (EOC) Volunteers is a perfect opportunity for those interested in helping in a command center environment. This group comprises personnel with degrees in emergency management, military backgrounds, current/former public safety personnel, IT professionals, or those seeking to gain real-world experience while giving back to the community. Personnel are trained to operate the center's technology and fill key staff positions.

The Reservist Program enables qualified individuals to be rostered as volunteers to assist during an emergency or disaster, with minimal commitment. Qualifications include, but are not limited to, previous disaster/emergency response experience, public safety or military service, previous completion of disaster-based training, public safety, or other related or past certifications.

Logistics Volunteers join the logistics team in addition to belonging to one of the other programs. They work alongside the HCEM staff to distribute supplies and ensure equipment is well maintained.