Lake County's Emergency Management Agency (EMA) is responsible for coordinating plans, people, and resources to protect our communities. We encourage collaboration before disasters, find and coordinate resources during disasters, and help communities recover after disasters. Be Prepared for an Emergency! Visit the Alert Lake County website.

Specific EM functions are often grouped into five phases:
     • Prevention
     • Preparedness
     • Response
     • Recovery
     • Mitigation

Prevention is directed at criminal or terrorist attacks, and includes activities like:
     • Analyzing hazards and vulnerabilities
     • Monitoring groups and organizations
     • Identifying and hardening potential targets
     • Collaborative planning and investigation
     • Information synthesis and sharing

Preparedness activities include:
     • Analyzing hazards and risk
     • Providing training for residents and responders
     • Anticipating needs and cataloging resources
     • Fostering partnerships
     • Developing emergency plans. 

Response is the work that other first-responder agencies do during a disaster.  During disasters, the Lake County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) supports first responders by:
     • Helping agencies follow their emergency plans
     • Providing information to responders and residents
     • Locating and coordinating resources for responders
     • Documenting actions and costs of response work
 
Recovery includes:
     • Compiling damage and impact assessments
     • Documenting protective and response costs
     • Identifying unmet needs
     • Partnering with support organizations
     • Coordinating with State and Federal disaster agencies

Mitigation is doing things to reduce the impact of disasters and reduce the costs of future disasters in regards to things like property damage, economic loss, physical injury, and loss of life.  A simple example of mitigation is the airbag in a car - it won't stop you from having a crash, but it will help protect you from injuries when you do crash.

Read More: Principles of Emergency Management