Activation Levels

The Osceola County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) has three (3) basic levels of activation:

 LEVEL 3: Monitoring Activation - The EOC is staffed by emergency management personnel and the communications staff who monitor conditions. Notification is made to selected staff who need to take action as part of their everyday responsibilities. The EOC is at level 3 under normal conditions.

 LEVEL 2: Elevated Activation - Elevated Activation - All emergency management staff are notified. The EOC will be staffed by emergency management personnel, necessary support staff and outside agencies as required to meet the operational needs of the incident.

 LEVEL 1: Full Activation - All primary and support agencies are notified. The county EOC is staffed by emergency management personnel, and all necessary emergency support functions will be conducted, as well as the Executive Policy Group.

Evacuation

Flood evacuation routes are available here.

Please contact the Office Of Emergency Management staff for questions at 407-742-9000.

Terrorism

The United States Code of Federal Regulation defines terrorism as:

"... the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives" (28 C.F.R. Section 0.85)."

Given this definition, Osceola County is subject to acts of terrorism, domestic or foreign. Any terrorist act upon the county is capable of deleterious consequences which may reach far beyond the county’s political boundaries.

As the social and economic effects would be far reaching, Emergency Management encourages everyone to remain alert and aware of your surroundings at all time and report any suspicious activity to the nearest law enforcement agency. If you are uncertain of your appropriate law enforcement agency, please call the Sheriff's Office at 407-348-1100

Weather

Osceola County is a Storm Ready Community and is subjected to a variety of weather threats. Included are severe thunderstorms, hail, high winds, tornadoes and hurricanes. In an effort to ensure all citizens of the county are aware, Emergency Management recommends the use of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Weather Radio.

Actually, the name weather radio is a misnomer as the device is used for notifying the population of a wide variety of hazards including weather. See this link for complete details and benefits of the NOAA All Hazards Radio.

The Weather Service Field Office for Osceola County is located in Melbourne, Florida and provides a wide array of forecast products. These products are available on the website located at: NWS-Melbourne

Osceola County Supports Skywarn. Skywarn is a group of trained weather spotters who activate during threatening weather conditions. They bring ground-truth weather information to assist in the interpretation of instrument indicated conditions. Learn more about Skywarn here.

Emergency Operations

Osceola County has adopted the National Incident Management System (NIMS) as the method by which to control and organize any and all incidents, emergencies and disasters. In 2003, Homeland Security Presidential Directive #5 mandated the use of the NIMS and its corresponding six core components.

As a result of NIMS, Osceola County has revised many required plans as well as operational methods. Typically, emergency operations centers are organized by emergency support functions (ESF) with a coordinating agency responsible for reporting activity within the ESF. With twenty ESF’s in Osceola County, span of control is exceeded significantly. To effectively manage these coordinating functions, Osceola County has integrated the Incident Command System (ICS) to maximize the benefits of an effective management tool.

The use of the ICS within the EOC coupled with a multijurisdictional/agency Executive Policy Group, Osceola can manage any incident with clear direction, excellent, effective planning all while minimizing duplication of efforts. For a complete review of Osceola County’s EOC Operational Guidelines, please refer to the CEMP Appendix A.

The Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) provides the foundation for all activity within the Office of Emergency Management and is updated every four years. The CEMP includes emergency operations and contains the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Operations Guide as a specific annex. The overall program is built on the Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment providing a quantitative analysis updated every year with a major revision every five years.

Standard Operations

Osceola County provides many emergency services to the citizens on a daily basis. Some of the services overlap into city government jurisdictions. While the cities within the county provide many services to their citizens, they also depend on Osceola County for services such as social services, health, sheltering of evacuees, and Emergency Management.

The statutory function of emergency management occurs within the Office of Emergency Management. The Director is delegated the authority. This delegation process occurs by way of the Board of County Commissioners delegating day to day activities through the County Manager. The County recognizes that emergency management is every employee’s responsibility as well as the public’s responsibility.

Osceola County Emergency Management must maintain the highest standards in preparedness and planning efforts. Florida statutes as well as the National Incident Management System comprised of six core components requires specific compliance criteria as mandated by Homeland Security Presidential Directive #5. All plans and training as well as specific infrastructure must meet these guidelines.

During threatening conditions, Emergency Management will activate proactively according to the threat. When activation occurs, the Executive Policy Group is convened to receive direct information and provide priority decision making. There are three levels of activation, Level 1, the highest and Level 3, the lowest. You can discover more information in the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan – Appendix A.