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About Emergency Management

Have a question about hazards in the Kirkland community? Not sure how to get started with preparedness? Want to request a preparedness presentation for your community group? We're here to help!

Get the latest preparedness tips, information about upcoming classes, volunteer opportunities, and other non-emergency updates:

The Office of Emergency Management is part of the Kirkland Fire Department. Emergency Management coordinates emergency planning, response, recovery, and preparedness efforts for the City.

See Kirkland's Office of Emergency Management in action in the video below, which shows the City's participation in the 2022 Cascadia Rising national disaster exercise. We practiced our point of distribution plans and our mass care sheltering capabilities.

What Emergency Management Does

A disaster is an event that goes beyond the scope of local resources. Normally, response agencies like Fire, Police, Public Works, and Parks & Community Services can handle emergencies, but during a disaster these agencies may be overwhelmed or unable to respond normally. Emergency Management provides coordination and control between responders, City departments, volunteers, and other stakeholders to respond effectively to disasters and emergencies.

When there's not an active incident, Emergency Management writes emergency plans, conducts training and exercises, teaches preparedness classes, and helps Kirkland get ready for emergencies.

This video is a good summary of Emergency Management's role in Kirkland: