FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 25, 2002 PR-038-02 www.nyc.gov |
MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG
VISITS CITY'S TEMPORARY
EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER IN BROOKLYN
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today visited New York City's temporary Emergency Operations Center (EOC). Office of Emergency Management (OEM) Commissioner Richard J. Sheirer led a tour of the facility, which was also attended by Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta. OEM, which develops emergency plans for the City and implements training programs and exercises to enhance their effectiveness, will occupy a two-story building located on Water Street, near the Brooklyn-side anchorages of the Brooklyn Bridge. The temporary EOC became operational last week.
"The Office of Emergency Management has played an indispensable role in planning and coordinating responses to emergencies in New York City and it demonstrated its effectiveness to the entire world on September 11 and the days that followed," Mayor Bloomberg said. "Until a new Command Center can be constructed, this temporary facility will allow OEM to work with agencies on the City, State and Federal levels to make sure that we are as prepared as we possibly can be to respond to any emergency situation. New Yorkers can rest assured that our emergency service workers have the tools to watch over our City, day and night."
"The
tragic events of September 11, 2001, made public safety and homeland
security top priorities for both the City of New York and the United
States," Commissioner Sheirer said. "OEM's move to this
new temporary facility symbolizes the City's ongoing commitment
to efficiency and accountability, while allowing the agency to continue
providing the City of New York with the finest in emergency management
planning and preparedness. Clearly, the best defense against disaster
is planning and preparedness, and with the construction of this
temporary Emergency Operations Center, the City of New York has
taken yet another step toward continuing to be the best-prepared
city in the world."
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will reimburse the City
for the approximately $3.8 million of costs associated with the
construction of this center. The center is a 40,000 square foot
facility to be staffed by emergency management personnel. It contains
an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) that makes it possible for
City, State, Federal, and private agencies and organizations to
work closely together in the event of a natural, technological,
or terrorist emergency in New York City. Initially designed for
100 representatives, the EOC may be expanded to accommodate an additional
100 emergency management personnel. The facility has a back-up power
generator, and a weather station and monitoring system. In addition,
the new facility maintains a complete Geographic Information System
(GIS) Mapping Unit and a 24-hour Watch Command center.
From
September 13, 2001 until last week, OEM operated from the Pier 92
of the Passenger Ship Terminal on Manhattan's West Side. Established
in 1996 as the Mayor's Office of Emergency Management and elevated
to the status of a Charter agency in November 2001, OEM is New York
City's on-scene coordinator at all emergency incidents that require
a multi-agency response.
www.nyc.gov
Contact: | Edward
Skyler / Jerry Russo (212) 788-2958 |
Francis
E. McCarton (OEM) (718) 422-4888 |