Phoenix— How can community members actively plan their own emergency response instead of relying on the government alone? To address this critical issue, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) recently hosted the Arizona Partners in Prepared­­ness Summit at the Desert Willow Conference Center.

The 6th Annual Whole Community Resilience Summit was recently held at the Salvation Army Southwest Division headquarters in Phoenix.    The focus for the annual Summit, collaboration, was exemplified throughout the event. The Summit was hosted by the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs (DEMA) and speakers represented national, state and county entities, and non-profit organizations. 

In an emergency, strong communication is essential to keep people safe and ensure a common operating picture among response agencies.  That’s why the deployment and careful handling of the Mobile Emergency Operations and Communications Center proved critical in battling the Sawmill Fire just south of Tucson.

Just in case. That was the credo of the Tribal Emergency Preparedness Summit, hosted by the Arizona Department of Military and Emergency Affairs (DEMA) and the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS), May 17, 2017.

Nearly 90 professional emergency managers, military leaders, public health professionals, health service providers and first responders from fire and law enforcement gathered to discuss the intricacies of emergency response for Arizona’s 22 tribes and the various resources that are available to them.

Interagency response efforts keep communities, including natural habitats and infrastructure, safe during emergencies. In the case of wildfires, the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs (DEMA) relies on its internal entities, the Arizona National Guard and the Division of Emergency Management, to work together to provide a strategic response.