Office of Emergency Management

About Us

Our mission is to coordinate the mitigation of, preparedness for, response to, and recovery from natural and human-caused disasters within Kalamazoo County.

The Kalamazoo County Office of Emergency Management (OEM), a division within the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office, is responsible for planning, coordinating and managing a consolidated emergency management program for Kalamazoo County. The duties include preparing for, responding to, mitigating, and recovering from a wide range of natural and man-made disasters. To fulfill this mandate, OEM works closely with others having responsibilities related to homeland security, emergency response and hazardous materials use or transportation.

The Kalamazoo County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) has been established under provisions of the Michigan Emergency Management Act, PA 390 of 1976, as amended, and the county's 1993 emergency management resolution, to ensure a coordinated public response in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.

Emergency management in Kalamazoo County is a comprehensive approach involving a range of public and private agencies including local police, fire and EMS agencies, the Michigan State Police Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, the 5th District Homeland Security Board and the National Weather Service. Other agencies involved with emergency management include the American Red Cross, local and state health departments, educators and amateur radio operators.

Emergency preparedness is the responsibility of every citizen. Therefore, county residents and businesses should develop a basic plan to help ensure their safety during these situations.

OEM provides comprehensive training for public officials and private citizens and maintains operational readiness of the County Emergency Operations Center for disaster management and all Homeland Security and Domestic Preparedness activities. The office maintains and deploys the mobile command post for use by local incident commanders during major events as well as other equipment available to agencies across the county and region.

As a participant on the 5th District Homeland Security Board, OEM works with other agencies in the nine counties of southwest Michigan to share intelligence, coordinate resources and maximize operating efficiencies.