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Emergency Management

"It won't happen to me" isn't an emergency plan.

Mission Statement
New Jersey law requires every municipality and county to have a state-approved emergency operations plan and to appoint an Emergency Management Coordinator, who in conjunction with local government, is responsible for coordinating the necessary actions to protect lives and property during times of disaster and emergency. Municipalities must also appoint an Emergency Management Council (known as Local Emergency Planning Council - (LEPC). Emergency Management programs on all levels of our government include not only the public safety units but volunteer and private entities such as the American Red Cross, Salvation Army and many fraternal and service organizations.

There are four phases in emergency management:

PLANNING: Identifying hazards, preparing for contingencies.
RESPONSE: The hands-on, initial response to the emergency.
RECOVERY: Getting back to normal, reestablish services.
MITIGATION: Prevent or reduce the impact of future emergencies.

Emergency Phone Notification

The Fair Lawn Office of Emergency Management is very involved in the safety of the community.

Telephone Notification System
Thank you for your interest in signing up for the Borough of Fair Lawn's Emergency Notification System. We are proud to offer this new service to the public. An Emergency Notification System, or Reverse 911 as they are sometimes known, gives those in charge of Public Safety a chance to reach out to the public in case of an emergency event. This system, combined with our other emergency alert methods, is designed to get emergency messages to you the public, quickly and effectively. This does not preclude you from calling 911 if you need emergency information; it simply provides an opportunity for us to disseminate critical information to you if and when the need arises. The reason for this form is to gather as many means of contact as you may have, so that in the event of an emergency that affects Fair Lawn, we can notify you in multiple ways.

Important Notes:

We maintain a constantly updating database of all land line telephone numbers registered in Fair Lawn. Feel free to list any additional land line phone numbers, however we are most interested in gathering cell phone numbers and email addresses.
If you have an Fair Lawn address, please provide it in the Street Address field, in the event of a localized emergency your local address will integrate with the notification systems mapping capabilities.
This information will remain in the custody of the Fair Lawn Office of Emergency Management at all times, and will only be used for Emergency Notification purposes.

We Appreciate You Taking The Time To Share This Important Information With Us!

Please read our terms and conditions carefully before registering:
Completion of this registration cannot guarantee receipt of timely notification in the event of "a large scale community emergency" due to unforeseen problems that an emergency could create. Should such a situation arrive, it is important that you also continue to monitor other public safety warning systems whenever possible. It is important to avoid calling 9-1-1 unless you have a true emergency. Whenever possible, an alternate phone number will be provided for questions and support.

Special Needs Registration Form:

Special Needs Registry Form

Dear Resident,
The Borough of Fair Lawn Office of Emergency Management maintains a Residential Special Needs Registry for citizens who may require special attention during times of emergency. If you or someone you know is using oxygen in their home, is homebound, confined to a wheelchair, is on dialysis, or has any other form of physical or mental disability, please take a few moments to fill out this application.

Please be assured that all information is kept confidential and is distributed to the police, fire, rescue, ambulance, health, and public works departments for use during an emergency.

Be sure to fill out and return the form to:

Fair Lawn Emergency Management
ATTN: Special Needs Registry
8-01 Fair Lawn Avenue, Fair Lawn, New Jersey 07410

Special Needs Form

H.E.A.R.T.S.

An explanation guide for emergency responders, school administrators, teachers, and parents in the safe evacuation and relocation of public and private schools in the event of an emergency.

Why Evacuate And Relocate?
No matter where we live or where our children go to school disasters are a fact of life. Natural or man-made, disasters can strike with a few days or hours advance notice. As emergency responders, school officials, and parents, we are confident that monthly school fire drills will result in the quick evacuation of our children. "What if the next alarm is a real fire and the outside temperature is below freezing?"

The H.E.A.R.T.S. plan will evacuate, relocate and shelter your child. Here’s how it works.........

The H.E.A.R.T.S. Plan

HEALTH - At any time during the school year, the health of our school children can be threatened by fire, chemical release, severe weather, or terrorist activity. As emergency responders, teachers, and parent, we must keep a cautious eye at the highways, railroad, chemical facilities, and public utilities that run through our community.
EVACUATION - When an emergency requires the quick removal of our children from a school building the fire alarms will be sounded and normal fire evacuation routes will be followed.
ACCOUNTABILITY - Immediately upon completion of the school evacuation attendance should be taken and reported to principal. Only the principal or acting principal should report missing students or staff to emergency responders.
RELOCATION - If it is determined that because of weather conditions, a hazardous environment, or student/faculty casualties that conditions outside the school are hazardous to the students well being, an order will be given to relocate the students to a transportation site.
TRANSPORTATION - After attendance has again been taken students will be transported to a shelter location via board of education buses by class. Under no circumstances will class groups be separated.
SHELTER - Upon arrival, attendance will again be taken and missing students and staff reported to the principal. Students will be dismissed to ONLY a parent or guardian from the shelter location. There will be NO general dismissal from the shelter!

1997 Media Award Recipient from the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM)

Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)

Then & Now
The CERT concept dates back to 1985, when the Los Angeles Fire Department recognized that in the early stages of a disaster – earthquakes in particular – local emergency responders would be overwhelmed, and basic training in disaster survival and rescue skills would improve the ability of community members to survive until responders or other assistance arrived.

Recognizing the universal value of this program, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) worked in conjunction with the LAFD to make the CERT program applicable to all types of hazards and developed a CERT training program which could be used nationwide and adapted to meet local conditions when the need arose.

The tragic events of September 11 remind us that disaster can strike anywhere or anytime, and that basic safety and disaster survival skills can mean the difference between life and death. CERT training empowers community members to prepare responsibly and respond appropriately when emergencies occur.

WHAT CERT TEAMS DO
CERT members give critical support to first responders in emergencies, provide immediate assistance to victims, organize spontaneous volunteers at a disaster site, and collect disaster intelligence to support first responder efforts.

ABOUT CERT TRAINING
If you join a CERT, you will receive basic-level training in the following areas:

Emergency Preparedness
Disaster Medical Operations
Fire Suppression
Light Search and Rescue Operations
CERT Operations/Incident Command System
Disaster Psychology
Terrorism Awareness
Community Animal Response Team
Disaster Simulation -- Skills Review

Total training is usually about 20 hours, scheduled in 2-4 hour modules, over a period of weeks or months, in order to address the scheduling needs of team members. It's held in the community or county where you live.

Training courses, student materials and equipment are provided free of charge.

Fair Lawn CERT
Fair Lawn is fortunate to have over 40 CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) volunteers.

If a disastrous event overwhelms or delays the community’s professional response team, Fair Lawn CERT members assist others until help arrives. They are trained in first aid/CPR, shelter management, fire suppression, traffic and crowd control, Emergency Operations Center management and many other areas of emergency rescue. CERT members can be identified by their green vests, and often cooperate with the Police Department assisting with traffic control during community events.

If you are interested in becoming a CERT member, call the Office of Emergency Management, 201-794-5392 or CERT Leader Nancy Brouca at fairlawncert@fairlawn.org for further information.

Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC)

The Borough of Fair Lawn Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) which is part of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) works to understand the hazards in the community, develop emergency plans in case of an accidental release or natural disaster, and looks for ways to prevent accidents. The role of LEPC is to form a partnership between local governments and industries to enhance all-hazards preparedness. The local government is responsible for hazmat planning and response within their jurisdiction and this includes:

Ensuring the local hazard analysis adequately addresses hazmat incidents;
Incorporating planning for hazmat incidents into the local emergency management plan and annexes;
Assessing capabilities and developing hazmat response capability using local resources, mutual aid and contractors;
Training responders
Exercising the plan

Industry must be a part of this planning process to ensure facility plans are compatible with local emergency plans. The LEPC is crucial to local hazardous materials planning and community right-to-know programs. Members of the LEPC represent the various organizations, agencies, departments, facilities, and/or other groups within the district.

Who Can Be A Member?
The membership comes from the local area and should be familiar with factors that affect public safety, the environment, and the economy of the community. In addition to its formal duties, the LEPC serves as a focal point in the community for information and discussions about hazardous substance emergency planning, and health and environmental risks.

Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES)

The new Fair Lawn Radio Emergency Service organization originally called The Fair Lawn Amateur Radio Club was founded in the spring of 1961 making it one of the oldest radio organizations in Northern New Jersey. The club is a general interest radio organization, but The Fair Lawn Radio Emergency Service organization during its 46-year history has always been dedicated to helping our community and our country when needed in times of crisis. Through Fair Lawn OEM, the Fair Lawn Radio Emergency Service organization has always been considered part of the Borough's Emergency Services. Many of our members are also RACES members and CERT members (Community Emergency Response Team).

Membership is open to any person interested in Amateur Radio whether they are licensed or not. Please e-mail dgotlib@fairlawn.org.

Fair Lawn Rescue

The Fair Lawn Rescue Squad is a volunteer organization, created for the purpose of preserving life and property This organization is responsible for providing emergency and non-emergency rescue services to the citizens, visitors, workers and businesses located within the political boundaries of the Borough of Fair Lawn, County of Bergen, State of New Jersey.

The Rescue Squad is available to aid other municipalities and government agencies upon request. The organization is primarily responsible for providing services such as vehicular rescue, hazardous materials emergency response, water rescue, confined space rescue, industrial and technical rescue. The organization also is available to assist the other emergency services of the Borough of Fair Lawn in a support role, including but not limited to the Police Department, Fire Department, and Ambulance Corps.

The Fair Lawn Rescue Squad is a division of the Fair Lawn Office of Emergency Management, which is a municipal office of the Borough of Fair Lawn. In 1985, the State of New Jersey adopted the term Emergency Management. This organization replaced the CD-DC and was hence known as the Office of Emergency Management (OEM). Col. Koenig continued to use the name CD-DC, until 1990, Tom Metzler became the new Director of OEM. At this point Fair Lawn officially adopted the name OEM.

The Squad found itself growing once more. In 1993, the Rescue Squad constructed a building on a vacant lot at the west end of Romaine Street behind the Fair Lawn High School. In the spring of 1994, the Squad officially moved into their new building. The building was expanded in 1998, to accommodate the continually growing Squad and to house a newly purchased Heavy Rescue truck.

Now operated by the Rescue Squad, the Hazardous Materials Unit (Haz-Mat) was formed to handle emergencies involving volatile or toxic substances. The agency provides Fair Lawn with an in-house service for which most other towns must rely on the Bergen County Haz-Mat Team. Through the dedication of volunteers who take the extensive and specialized training, the Borough of Fair Lawn was able to invest the considerable funds needed to buy the high-tech apparatus and gear the job requires. In 1997, the Haz-Mat Unit officially became part of the Rescue Squad and its specialized vehicle and gear are now housed at the Rescue Building.

The Rescue Squad conducts weekly practical drills at select sites throughout the Borough of Fair Lawn.

Resources

Local Agencies

County And State Agencies

Weather And Flooding Information

Emergency Preparedness

Emergency Preparedness For Businesses

FEMA Preparing Your Business
When, Not If: Preparing Your Business For Disasters
Make A Plan
Prepare My Business for an Emergency
Sample Business Continuity and Disaster Preparedness Plan

Emergency Preparedness For Kids