NCJ Number
208258
Journal
Homeland Defense Journal Volume: 2 Issue: 10 Dated: November 2004 Pages: 26-30
Date Published
November 2004
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article describes the emergency preparedness of California.
Abstract
While California has been jokingly referred to as the “disaster State” because of all the natural disasters the State endures, this experience has made California one of the most prepared States in the Nation for any type of disaster. The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (OES) is described as the “most experienced, innovative and effective emergency management agency in the world.” OES has created an integrated system in which State, city, and county emergency services work together to respond to any type of disaster. The fact that California has a lot of natural disasters means the State gets plenty of practice deploying its emergency management plan. In fact, the Terrorism Early Warning (TEW) program in Los Angeles has been adopted by the Office of Domestic Preparedness (ODP) as the Federal model of a homeland security initiative. Federal funding for domestic preparedness has been divided up within the State from a ground-up orientation that has included funding for multidiscipline and regional cooperation planning. Given the fact that California has been the possible target of foiled terrorist attacks, officials and emergency responders in the State are remaining vigilant and focusing on the three pillars of prevention, response, and recovery.