About Us
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Emergency Management Office (CMEMO) is a function of the City of Charlotteand Mecklenburg Countyassigned to the Charlotte Fire Departmentfor day-to-day supervision. The Emergency Management Office is responsible for planning, orchestrating, and coordinating the community's resources and efforts in preparation for, response to, and recovery from all hazards, both natural and man-made. The Emergency Management Office serves as an advisory and coordination entity to ensure that all parts of the emergency response and recovery processes operate towards a common goal and common operating picture.
CMEMO is staffed with a Director, an Emergency Management Coordinator, a Hazardous Materials Coordinator, three Emergency Management Planners, a Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) Logistics Planner, a Financial Administrator, and a Grants Administrator.
CMEMO is responsible for performing technical work in the development, implementation, and management of countywide disaster preparedness, response, recovery, mitigation, risk education, and prevention. Emergency Management is responsible for maintaining the County Emergency Operations Plan (EOP), the Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP), the Uptown Evacuation Plan, and other plans that prepare the City and the County for hazards of all types. This task is accomplished through a partnership built on a platform of cooperation and coordination with various local governments, non-profit agencies, private sector companies, and faith-based organizations.
CMEMO maintains the County's hazardous materials program. The Hazardous Materials Coordinator works closely with the Charlotte Fire Department's (CFD) Hazardous Materials (HazMat) Team to respond to all hazardous materials incidents in the City. In addition to serving the City, the CFD HazMat team is also a member of the NC Regional Response Team (RRT) which responds to large hazardous materials incidents throughout the state when requested. CMEMO also manages the Tier II program for Mecklenburg County. This Federal program requires all businesses, governmental and private sector, to report their chemical inventories annually. In accordance with the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), facilities must submit an Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory Form to the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), the State Emergency Response Commission (SERC), and the local fire department annually. CMEMO serves as the local reporting entity for both the LEPC and the local fire departments within Mecklenburg County.
The Emergency Management team manages the County's Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The EOC functions as the strategic overview, or "big picture", coordination center during a disaster, coordinating resources but not directly controlling field assets. The EOC is responsible for collecting, gathering, and analyzing data; making decision that project life and property, maintaining a common operating picture among all partners, maintaining continuity of operations, and coordination and cooperation among all stakeholders.
The EOC gathers and processes information to and from county agencies, municipalities, school and special districts, business and industry, volunteer organizations, individuals, and state and federal government agencies. Through the use of a virtual EOC, public and private organization can communicate with the EOC without relocating from their operational area.
CMEMO maintains the Fixed Nuclear Facility (FNF) Emergency Preparedness Program for the two nuclear facilities in the vicinity of Mecklenburg County. Charlotte-Mecklenburg authorities work very closely with Duke Energy to maintain the highest level of emergency preparedness for both the McGuire and Catawba Nuclear Power Plants.