HARRISBURG, Pa. – Governor Rendell today announced that the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency has become one of the first state programs in the nation to receive national accreditation by the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) Commission for meeting certain standards, including demonstrating a public emergency alert and warning system and utilizing an incident management system.
“This distinction speaks volumes about the team of professionals who are so committed to keeping our residents and visitors safe,” Governor Rendell said. “The accreditation represents a significant achievement and I am immensely proud of our emergency personnel who helped Pennsylvania earn this national honor for the excellence of its emergency management program.”
“I want to commend the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency staff for their hard work in accomplishing this. It’s a testament to the high priority the commonwealth has placed on public safety,” the Governor added. “And, I want to especially thank former PEMA directors David M. Sanko and Adrian R. King, Jr. for leading Pennsylvania’s emergency management team to this most important certification.”
The Emergency Management Accreditation Program is part of a national effort to establish a baseline measurement of the nation’s emergency management capabilities. It helps states improve their ability to prepare for, and respond to, emergencies and disasters of all kinds.
EMAP is a voluntary accreditation process for state, territorial and local government programs that coordinate preparedness and response activities for all disasters. To achieve accreditation status, PEMA had to document compliance with all 54 national accreditation standards. The national standards consist of planning and procedures; resource management; training; exercises; evaluations and corrective actions; and communications and warning. PEMA was required to demonstrate, through program assessment, documentation and onsite visits from an independent team, that its emergency management program meets national standards.
The EMAP Standard is the set of criteria against which programs are measured. The standards are intended to indicate what a quality emergency management program encompasses. Some of the standards PEMA had to meet include documenting a system to disseminate emergency alerts and warnings to the public; using an incident management system to direct, control and coordinate on-scene activities of an incident; identifying hazards and assessing the risks to people, as well as public and private property and structures; and document training activities including, the names of people that have been trained, the types of training planned and conducted and qualifications of trainers. PEMA will be re-evaluated by EMAP assessors every five years.
EMAP recognizes the capabilities of a state or local government to bring together personnel, resources, and communications from a variety of agencies and disciplines in preparation for and in response to an emergency or disaster. EMAP’s process fosters benchmarking against consistent standards and continuous improvement in local and state government emergency management.
For more information please visit the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Web site at www.pema.state.pa.us.
The Rendell Administration is committed to creating a first-rate public education system, protecting our most vulnerable citizens and continuing economic investment to support our communities and businesses. To find out more about Governor Rendell’s initiatives and to sign up for his weekly newsletter, visit his Web site at: www.governor.state.pa.us.