RD49 - 2015 Report on the Status of Emergency Response Plans and Preparedness Efforts in the Commonwealth


Executive Summary:
The Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) is pleased to report that almost all localities, executive branch agencies, and public institutions of higher education in Virginia have a current emergency operations plan.

• 135 of 138 jurisdictions (98 percent) have current local emergency operations plans

• 112 of 113 executive branch agencies and institutions of higher education submitted an updated continuity plan to VDEM.

VDEM will continue to work with these partners to ensure plans are flexible, scalable, and address the complex risk environment based on evolving threats and hazards.

Our current operating environment requires a shared and coordinated planning effort across state agencies and secretariats, and outside of government. This past year, state agencies collaborated with each other and with localities on numerous successful planning efforts.

• VDEM and other state agencies worked with the City of Richmond and counties of Henrico, Hanover, and Caroline to host the 2015 UCI World Championship.

• State agencies, including VDH, DEQ, VSP and VDEM, finalized an Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) Response Plan, which outlines the coordinated healthcare actions required to prepare for and respond suspected cases of EVD within the Commonwealth.

• Northern Virginia localities, along with VDEM, VDOT, VSP, Maryland Emergency Management Agency and D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency collaborated to carry out the planning efforts for the 2015 World Police and Fire Games as well as the papal visit.

Given the dynamic environment we live in, these types of collaborative initiatives are only expected to increase in 2016.

VDEM is continuing to take measures to ensure the Commonwealth is prepared for and able to response to and recover from the threats and hazards we face. Thanks to efforts across all state agencies, Virginia was accredited for the third time in a row by the Emergency Management Assessment Program (EMAP). In 2015, VDEM’s reorganization consolidated planning across the agency into a single Planning Division, which conducts strategic planning and integrates operational planning and daily situation awareness.

The Commonwealth is engaged in a wide variety of activities to plan for both persistent and evolving threats and hazards. The recommendations proposed will enhance the Commonwealth’s planning efforts and help ensure Virginia is prepared for all threats and hazards. These recommendations include:

• Implement disaster planning software across the Commonwealth to digitize all plans to increase efficiency and coordination between agencies and localities.

• Utilize common operating picture (COP) tools to provide situational awareness to state leaders as information develops in real-time.