Seven full-time employees staff the Somerset County Office of Emergency Management, or OEM. In addition to the director, there are three deputy coordinators, two administrative assistants and one radio technician. The duties of the office include the following:

• Emergency Management obligations
   
• 9-1-1 Communications Center
   
• Emergency Services Training Academy
   
• Hazardous Materials Response Team
   

Director Douglas J. Vornlocker oversees the entire operation from his office located in Hillsborough at the Emergency Services Training Academy. By definition, the emergency management director is responsible for the development, coordination and activation of countywide mutual aid and emergency management plans. During an emergency he is responsible for the activation of county emergency management facilities and must provide necessary resources available from the county government. All of the county’s 21 municipalities have active municipal coordinators and they all maintain approved Emergency Operations Plans.

In Somerset County the director also oversees the operation of the county 9-1-1 Communications Center, which is staffed by 20 full-time dispatchers and five supervisors. One of the Deputy Coordinators is permanently assigned as the Communications Chief. The 9-1-1 center handles complete fulltime dispatch for six of the 21 municipalities and handles 9-1-1 dispatch (fire, EMS or both) for nine additional communities. The communications center is the central dispatch point for the county Sheriff’s Department, the Prosecutor’s Office and county specialized units such as Hazmat, CART, SCERT and Hostage Negotiations unit. The center is also the backup dispatch point for emergency services throughout the county.

The center annually handles over 158,000 calls for service in addition to over 65,000 9-1-1 calls. The county also has an extensive flood-monitoring program where the major streams and rivers in the county are monitored and alarmed. Members of the county Engineering Division maintain these monitors and they utilize a 24/7 computer monitoring system based in the 9-1-1 Communications Center. Weather monitoring is also accomplished at the center.

A newly installed county-wide UHF radio trunking system will expand and enhance the capabilities of routine county services such as Transportation, Roads & Bridges, Recycling, etc. The system is also designed to include the emergency response community. Many of these departments will be transitioning to this system in the near future.

The OEM also coordinates and is in charge of the county Hazardous Materials Response Team. The team is comprised of an all-volunteer staff of county employees and local fire and EMS people. The team is involved in approximately 200 responses on an annual basis. Incidents range from minor leaks and spills to the complex problems of industrial releases and major transportation accidents. Training for the Hazmat team consists of Awareness, Operations and Technician-level courses, ICS 100 & 200, in addition to other training, seminars and workshops. Ongoing training is also conducted in Standard Operating Procedures such as driver training, equipment and instrument operations, response procedures and decontamination.

The Somerset County Emergency Services Training Academy is also the responsibility of the OEM. A Training Supervisor oversees an extensive roster of classes including basic fire fighting and EMS courses. These courses are offered in the spring and again in the fall. Additional courses such as Firefighter II, Fire Officer, EMS, Hazmat Awareness and Operations, Search & Rescue and many other courses are also conducted at the Academy. Currently there are 26 fire instructors and 16 EMS instructors.

The Academy is located on Roycefield Road in Hillsborough Township and includes an administration building with 5 class rooms, burn building with 3 burn simulators for live fire training; 5-story training tower for rappelling and ladder drills; smokehouse with moveable walls and an outdoor classroom. A drafting pond is also on site as well as large concrete pads for extrication drills and fire extinguisher training. The Academy also conducts confined space training, railroad tank car simulations and flashover training in a specially designed structure.

Hurricane Floyd rumbled through Somerset County in September of 1999 and stretched all of our resources to the limit. The new Emergency Operations Center was quickly put to the test. It remained open 24 hours a day for 10 days and supplied the needs of the communities that were inundated by the storm. The combined effort of the New Jersey State Police OEM, NJ National Guard, Red Cross, Salvation Army, county VOAD (Volunteer Organizations Assisting in Disasters) and many state and federal organizations helped to mitigate the effects of the most devastating storm to hit the county in 30 years.

Since then the County has endured winter storms that closed schools and roadways and altered the daily lifestyle of many residents. Some of these events qualified for Federal reimbursements through FEMA and the office coordinated this effort.

The fight against terrorism is of prime importance. Critical infrastructures throughout the county are monitored by the local services. Information and intelligence on activities is disseminated routinely. The office continually interfaces with the New Jersey State Police Office of Emergency Management to keep the lines of communications open. Local OEMs and emergency services have been provided equipment obtained through various grants and programs. Training is provided by the staff as needed.

Planning and exercising is an ongoing process. Exercises involving WMD, bio-terrorism, search & rescue, and evacuations have all been conducted.

The CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) program is part of the national Citizen Corps initiative. Many communities have CERT teams trained at this time. The county has provided the facilities and instructors for two training sessions so far. Interested citizens should contact their local OEM coordinator for additional information.

The Somerset County OEM is constantly striving to maintain a high degree of preparedness for its citizens.