What is Emergency Management?

Emergency management is a young and growing field. With the creation fo the FEderal Emergency Management AGency (FEMA) in 1978, the "All-Hazards" approach to emergency management was born, replacing the nuclear attack image of civil defense. This new "All Hazards" approach is being applied to natural disasters, such as severe storms, floods, earthquakes, as well as man-made disasters, such as chemical spills.

Since it's creation, emergency management has evolved as an international discipline featuring ever-widening fields of research, necessary in a world that's rapidly becoming more technolgically complex -- and more dangerous because of it. The Indiana State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) is the State's lead agency in this field and the Porter County Emergency Management Agency (PCEMA) is the County's lead agency in this field.

The Porter County Emergency Management Agency's mission is to reduce the loss of life and property through the use of risk-based emergency management programs consisting of the following four divisions:

1. Preparedness: Educate the public in how to prepare for any and all hazards that could affect their lives and property.
   
2. Response: Co-ordinate the response efforts of all emergency services to the public.
   
3. Recovery: Assist in making recovery efforts effective and efficient.
   
4. Mitigation: Help make and implement changes in laws, ordinances, and building codes that would lessen the impact or prevent a disaster.