USACE South Atlantic Wilmington District Achieves Emergency Management Accreditation

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Oct. 8, 2013 - PRLog -- Congratulations to the United States Army Corp of Engineers South Atlantic Wilmington District for achieving accreditation with the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP).

"Accreditation is a hallmark of accountability to the community, stakeholders, and elected officials - the seal of approval from professional peers," Barb Graff, Director of Seattle Office of Emergency Management and Chair of the EMAP Commission, “[This] program serve as role models in the profession of emergency management.”

Emergency management accreditation represents a significant achievement as a means of demonstrating that a program meets industry standards, Emergency Management Standard, for their disaster preparedness and response systems. The intent of the standards and the accreditation process is to promote consistent quality in emergency management programs. Thus, providing preparedness sustainability to the community and public infrastructure these programs serve. To achieve accreditation, emergency management programs document compliance to the standards and undergo a peer-review assessment by EMAP trained assessors. Accreditation is valid for five years from the date the EMAP Commission grants accreditation.

EMAP is a voluntary accreditation process for emergency management programs that coordinate preparedness and response activities for disasters based on industry standards. The Emergency Management Standard by EMAP creates a structure for strategic planning for improvement coupled with methodical, verified assessment by experienced peers from other jurisdictions, which results in stronger capabilities and accountability. The EMAP process evaluates emergency management programs on compliance with requirements in standards that include: planning, resource management, training, exercises, evaluations and corrective actions, and communications and warning. EMAP is the only accreditation process for emergency management programs.