PREPAREDNESS DIVISION

The Preparedness Division plans, trains and exercises the State’s response to emergency/disaster and assists other jurisdictions in their planning, training, and exercise efforts.

Planning Branch:

The Planning Branch consists of a Branch Manager and six planners. It works to continually improve the State’s ability to help minimize loss of life and damage to property in jurisdictions affected by disaster. It coordinates the yearly review and revision of the Arkansas Emergency Operations Plan. The Branch works with each of the State’s 77 designated emergency jurisdictions to review and revise their Emergency Operations Plans. It helps insure that federal, State and local emergency response plans complement and support each other. The Planning Branch also assists State agencies and other organizations in planning for continuity of operations and assists FEMA Region VI in planning at the federal level. The Planning Branch strives to meet or exceed the recommendations and the standards set by experts in the planning field and by federal guidance.

Training and Exercise Branch:

Branch Manager, Mark Hooker, supervises eight employees of the Training and Exercise Branch.  Mark is also ADEM’s primary point of contact for the National Incident Management System (NIMS). 

Training:

ADEM offers a variety of training opportunities dealing with emergency management, terrorism preparedness, hazardous materials, and weapons of mass destruction.  Training is available to local emergency managers and first responders, city and county government officials, representatives of volunteer organizations, others in the private sector interested in emergency management.

The Hazardous Materials Program, which is the administrative branch of the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), is also operated by the Training Section.  It maintains a database of all reported hazardous chemicals stored or used in the work place for the last four years.  This information is used in the event of emergencies to provide data analysis for local emergency planning committee (LEPC) emergency planning, and to support the Freedom of Information Act.

The goal of the Exercise Section is to improve the overall readiness and targeted capabilities of emergency response by validating training, emergency plans and procedures to reveal strengths and weaknesses, demonstrate operational capabilities, and to prepare personnel for real world events. This readiness is implemented seminars, workshops, tabletops, functional and full scale exercises which are defined by the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP).