Get Involved and Volunteer
There are many ways that you can get involved- especially before a disaster. You can participate in programs and activities to make your family, home, and communities safer and more prepared.
If a major disaster occurs and overwhelms first response agencies, trained volunteers that are affiliated with an organization can play important roles in disaster response and recovery.
Here are a few ways that you can help:
- Inform others.
- Teach friends, family and coworkers about getting prepared, staying informed, and getting involved.
- Request a free delivery of Until Help Arrives training for your neighborhood, faith based group, or organization. For more information about this training, please contact our office.
- Volunteer on one of our Special Teams.
- Help your neighbors.
- Start a community preparedness project. More information at Serve.Gov.
- Be an Informed Citizen.
- Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) meetings are open to the public. The LEPC is a volunteer committee that meets to develop emergency response plans and provide information about chemicals in a community to citizens.
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The Cumberland County Emergency Management Agency has a variety of emergency management response teams that play key roles during disasters. These teams are made up of highly skilled and trained volunteers.
CCEMA Emergency Management Response Teams (Special Teams) are voluntary organizations which are established and maintained within CCEMA for operational support and are coordinated to ensure a broad coverage of assistance during emergencies.
They include:
Cumberland County Animal Response Team (CCART)
Our mission is to provide community awareness of disaster planning and preparedness related to companion animals and large animals, and to assist in emergency sheltering of companion animals. We operate under the direction of the Cumberland County Emergency Management Agency Director and in coordination with the American Red Cross.
Shelters
Under the direction of the Emergency Management Director, our team can be mobilized to provide pet friendly emergency sheltering in coordination with the American Red Cross human shelters. The pet shelter will be located within walking distance of the American Red Cross human shelter.
Notifications
In the event of an emergency, you will be notified via television, radio, and Maine 2-1-1, which is Maine’s new emergency information hotline. You will be advised where the pet-friendly co-shelters are located.
Our Team
Our team consists of community members from Cumberland County who have received training in the U.S. Citizens Corps Community Emergency Response Team standards. The team then receives specialty training, incorporating best practices from the Humane Society of the United States and United Animal Nation.
We have also received training from the Federal Emergency Management Agency following the National Incident Management System guidelines. Some of our members have furthered their education in Technical Large Animal Rescue.
To learn more, please check out the CCART Facebook Page or contact Ron Jones, the CCART Liaison 207-892-6785 or oneil@cumberlandcounty.org.
Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT)
IMAT Mission
The Cumberland County Emergency Management Agency’s Incident Management Assistance Team’s (IMAT) mission is to provide municipalities with Incident Command System (ICS) Command and General Staff assistance to manage large scale (multi-jurisdictional) or long duration (24 hours plus) incidents. These incidents include natural and human-caused events such as floods, fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, aircraft crashes, Hazardous Materials (HazMat) releases, Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)/Terrorism attacks, etc.
Who We Are
The Cumberland County Emergency Management Agency (CCEMA) IMAT Team has 35 members. The team is primarily comprised of seasoned public safety officials, public sector and former military individuals and has demonstrated that it can train, exercise, equip and sustain this capability.
What We Do
Often times an Incident Commanders (senior fire service or law enforcement officers) may lack the span of control, the endurance, or the ability to concurrently conduct current operations and planning for future operations because they lack the workforce to assist them. The Cumberland County IMAT is a resource the Incident Commander can call upon to provide this assistance and enable the Incident Commander to safely and effectively accomplish the mission. The team is also capable of assisting communities with planning for large or protracted events that a community may be contemplating.
Amateur Radio Teams
Amateur radio (ham radio) is a hobby and service in which licensed participants operate communications equipment. In a time of disaster when communications channels fail, ham radio operators assist with emergency communications efforts and work with public service agencies. There are more than 2000 amateur radio clubs across the county, and 2,000,000 operators worldwide. The Wireless Society of Southern Maine is a valuable communication partner to CCEMA.
Wireless Society of Southern Maine (WSSM)
WSSM brings together both new and experienced operators alike to share in the enjoyment of amateur radio, and also brings together their skills to encourage improvement in all the various phases of the hobby, including public service potential, operating ability, courtesy, and technical proficiency. Membership is open to all persons interested in radio communications. For more information, please visit the WSSM website.
Youth Fire Safety & Intervention Collaborative
Nationally, more than half of all intentionally set fires are started by youths under the age of 18. When a child or adolescent sets a fire and receives no intervention, there is a better than 50% chance he or she will set a second fire. If, in fact, a second fire is set, the chances are better than 80% that the fire setting will continue. Fires set by children are common and a problem affecting many families. While curiosity about fire is natural, fire setting is dangerous and deadly.
If your child is displaying fire setting behavior, you and your family are at higher risk for suffering the consequences of a fire. Remember, you are not the only parent to face this problem. ?If you discover evidence of a fire set by your child, or your child talks about setting fires, or is curious about fire; contact your local fire department or contact us at 207-894-3706 for help.