Sedgwick County Emergency Management protects its residents from disaster in three basic ways: through public education, by providing advanced notice and alerts for looming emergencies, and through the coordination of emergency response. Veteran emergency management specialists work with new recruits to pass on their wealth of knowledge gained after careful study of each and every disaster to have struck Sedgwick County.
Citizens are encouraged to stay informed about the latest developments in the fields of damage mitigation and survival, and have a variety of classes at their disposal that are offered by Sedgwick County Emergency Management Coordinators:
- Community Emergency Response Teams: Provides instructions on how to prepare for and what actions to take before, during, and after particular disasters
- Medical Reserve Corps: Prepares citizens to respond to medical situations
- Metropolitan Medical Response System: Instructs residents on how they can help in public health emergencies and mass casualty situations
Planning for Emergency Management Jobs in Sedgwick County
There are a variety of local and national sources where hopeful emergency management coordinators can obtain valuable education for their careers. Having the right emergency management degree and certification can make a difference during the competitive application process.
Private and public higher education programs for emergency management specialists are also available in Sedgwick County, including associate and bachelor degrees in:
- Communications
- Homeland Security
- Business
- Meteorology
- Geography
- Psychology
- Engineering
The Kansas State Fire Marshall organizes Sedgwick County training certification courses in:
- Hazardous Materials
- Chlorine and Corrosive Emergencies
- Carbon Monoxide and Natural Gas Response
- Explosives and Meth Lab Awareness
- Railroad Emergencies
Candidates can obtain federal certification online or through the Kansas Division of Emergency Management in courses such as:
- Disaster Preparedness
- Emergency and Disaster Management
- Disaster Health
- Emergency Management and Public Health
Emergency Management in Sedgwick County from Tornadoes to Sinkholes
Emergency management specialists found themselves hunkered down in their command center on the night of April 14th, 2012 after being called into work as weather forecasts were predicting tornado touchdowns in Sedgwick County. Unfortunately the meteorologists were right- emergency management coordinators were up throughout the night dispatching medical services, reporting utility outages, managing damage assessments, issuing public statements, and keeping the appropriate state and federal authorities informed. Ultimately the whirling vortex of wind caused $146 million in damage, either mostly or completely destroying 11 businesses and 66 homes. The good news was that there were no reported fatalities in Sedgwick County, a fact attributable to public information campaigns and training courses coordinated by emergency management specialists instructing the public on how to survive a tornado. The description of most emergency management jobs in Sedgwick County includes a large segment devoted to preventative education.
Aside from preparing for tornadoes and other likely disasters, emergency management coordinators must also plan for unexpected catastrophes. This includes multi-agency emergency management training in Sedgwick County for sinkholes. In light of the recent sinkhole event in Florida that saw a man disappear through his bedroom floor into a 60-foot pit never to be seen again, county officials have been wondering if the same thing could happen here. Those working in emergency management careers in Sedgwick County are not taking any chances, and have already created contingency plans for such as event. In a neighboring county, 32 homes were recently purchased by a mining company because they were in danger of falling into sinkholes created by previous salt extraction- and in other places that salt is simply dissolving, creating further worries.