Emergency Management
210 N. Grand Ave. Houston MO 65483
VACANT, Director
Richard Wood, Deputy
Our Mission
“To protect the lives and property of all residents when major disasters threaten public safety in any part of Texas County. The Texas County Office of Emergency Management responds to two types of disasters- natural and manmade. Natural disasters are major snow and/ or ice storms, floods, tornadoes, and/ or severe weather, as well as the threat of a serious earthquake along Missouri’s New Madrid Fault. Manmade disasters may include hazardous material incidents, nuclear power plant accidents and other radiological hazards. The Texas County Office of Emergency Management is also responsible for developing a County Emergency Operations plan which coordinates the actions of Texas County local government departments and agencies in the event of any emergency requiring use of resources and personnel.”
The Texas County Office of Emergency Management is responsible for establishing and facilitating a process and structure for the systematic, coordination and effective delivery of public safety services to address the consequences of the destructive forces of natural and man-made disasters through a comprehensive program of mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.
The activities and responsibilities of Emergency Management are conducted in stages:
- Mitigation – Activities that eliminate or reduce the chance of occurrence or effects of a disaster.
- Preparedness - The time prior to the onset of a threat, emergency, or disaster. It involves planning and activities that are focused on improving the overall capability of responding to and managing emergencies or disasters.
- Increased Readiness - Responding to the forecast of a disaster. County departments monitor and assess conditions that could develop into a major emergency or disaster situation and keep the Office of Emergency Management informed of any potential problems.
- Response - This starts at the onset of an emergency or disaster event and continues until the situation is stabilized or brought under control.
- Initial Relief and Recovery - This starts as soon as the situation becomes stabilized and continues until essential services are re-established and long term recovery planning and redevelopment activities can begin.
The burden of disaster management, and the resources to deal with it, requires a partnership among all levels of government, the private/business sector, voluntary organizations and the general public/community.