The Connoquenessing Valley Regional Emergency Management Agency (EMA) was founded on October, 15th 2018 by the municipalities of Connoquenessing Borough, Evans City Borough and Connoquenessing Township of Butler County, Pennsylvania.  The agency has been established to oversee the responsibilities of Pennsylvania’s Emergency Services code on behalf of municipalities that join us in this important effort for our region.  To support this, we also reach out to partners in public safety as well as our residents and local businesses to help prepare our region for times of emergency and disaster.

On this, our initial website, you will find information on the region’s emergency management program, starting with the definition of this important function of your local government:

 

“Emergency management is the managerial function charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters.”

The Connoquenessing Valley Regional Emergency Management Agency exists to serve our community within this role.  We are not simply a “response” agency that reacts to an emergency however, we first prepare for the time when our community needs us by working together with the community ahead of time.  This is done by following the vision and mission of emergency management, as promoted by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA):

 

Vision:

“Emergency management seeks to promote safer, less vulnerable communities with the capacity to cope with hazards and disasters.”

 

Mission:

“Emergency management protects communities by coordinating and integrating all activities necessary to build, sustain, and improve the capability to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from threatened or actual natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters.”

 

 

Find us on Facebook and Instagram

 @CVREMA.ORG     @CVREMA

Agency Activation

 

Activation of the Connoquenessing Valley Regional Emergency Management Agency (EMA) and activation of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), as needed, may be requested by the elected officials of one or more participating municipalities or their designated public safety officials, such as the local police chief or fire chief, for an unmet need or other public safety matter.  The EMC may also activate the EMA and EOC, as needed, upon directly learning of a need or via notification by elected and/or designated public safety officials of one or more of any participating municipality.  Costs incurred by the EMA during activation will be shared between all participating municipalities involved in the activation, per the intergovernmental agreement (agreement) between the participating municipalities.  If only a single participating municipality activates the EMA, that municipality is then solely responsible for the costs incurred during the activation, per the agreement.

Community Participation

 

Residents and businesses in our region also have a role in community emergency preparedness.  Here are some simple things you can do to prepare:

-      Reduce hazards in and around your home or business

-      Develop a preparedness plan

-      Assemble emergency supplies

-      Monitor emergency alerts

-      Have quick access to emergency numbers and your community’s emergency notification systems

-      Volunteer with an established organization

-      Take training in emergency response

At the bottom of this page you will find links to valuable resources that you can use to prepare your home or business for emergencies along with links to other organizations & information.  Please take some time to take advantage of these free resources.  In addition, if you are looking for a way to get “plugged-in” to a local volunteer organization, please see our “Volunteers Needed” section below for information.

 

Working with you to prepare,

Daniel R. Cox, Director and Emergency Management Coordinator

 

Participating Municipalities

 

-         Connoquenessing Borough

-         Connoquenessing Township

-         Evans City Borough

Volunteers Needed

Like the majority of fire departments in Pennsylvania, your local Emergency Management Agency (EMA) is staffed by volunteers, including the region’s Emergency Management Coordinator (EMC).  The EMC is an individual recommended by local government officials and appointed by the governor to manage the region’s emergency management program.  To accomplish this, the EMC works with local residents, businesses, organizations and multiple government resources to plan and prepare for emergencies alongside other volunteers of the agency that each bring their own skills and ideas to the effort.

To accomplish our mission we need resources, and the PRIMARY resource we need is HUMAN ones… people from the community that will invest their time to make their community safer.  If you can spend even one evening or day a month to work with us or one of our partner organizations, we can serve together in preparation to lend a hand to our neighbors in their time of need.

Please reach out to us by calling the Connoquenessing Borough office (website link above) if you would like to join us in this important effort.  Your local participating municipality can also put you in touch with the agency.  Thank YOU!

Agency Leadership and Operations

 

Oversight of the Connoquenessing Valley Regional EMA is the responsibility of the agency’s Executive Committee.  A primary and alternate elected official from each participating municipality is appointed to serve on the Executive Committee with each municipality having a single representative “active” on the committee for the purposes of voting on agency business.  The Executive Committee elects a Chair and Vice Chair from among its members to oversee agency business.

Day to day administration and operations is managed by the agency’s Director who also serves as the Emergency Management Coordinator (EMC) on behalf of the agency and its participating municipalities.  The Executive Committee Chair works closely with the Director as well to support agency operations as needed.  In addition to the Director, the Executive Committee appoints a Secretary and five (5) Deputy Emergency Management Coordinators.  The Deputy EMCs train to the same level as the EMC so that the agency has adequate personnel to support the operation of the agency’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for extended periods of time or in the absence of the EMC.  The Director and EMC may also recruit and train Emergency Management Specialists that wish to volunteer their time with the agency to prepare for emergencies and disasters.  These Specialists may be skilled in communications, emergency response, finance, construction, public relations, architecture, human resources or many other skill sets that can greatly support the efforts of the agency to prepare for and respond to emergencies and disasters.

Below is the current listing of these dedicated officials that give of their time to serve our community.  As mentioned above, if you are interested in working with us, please reach out through the Connoquenessing Borough office or your local participating municipality and ask to be put in touch with one of the representatives listed below.

Executive Committee:

Chair:  Brad Rubinosky - Evans City Borough, primary member

Vice Chair:  Mayor Deborah Williamson - Connoquenessing Borough, primary member

Member:  Angela K. Fleeger - Connoquenessing Township, primary member

Member:  Christopher Logan - Connoquenessing Borough, alternate member

Member:  Mark A. Williams - Connoquenessing Township, alternate member

Member:  Erica Jamieson - Evans City Borough, alternate member

Agency Administration and Staff:

Director and EMC:  Daniel R. Cox

Secretary:  Christopher Logan

Deputy EMC:  Michele Beck

Deputy EMC:  Vacant - Actively Recruiting

Deputy EMC:  Vacant - Actively Recruiting

Deputy EMC:  Vacant - Actively Recruiting

Deputy EMC:  Vacant - Actively Recruiting

Specialist:  Aaron Miller

Specialists:  Actively Recruiting

 

Please Click HERE to read the JOB DESCRIPTION for our open “Deputy EMC” positions, or HERE for a “Specialist” Role.  Our Specialists provide expertise to the agency without the administrative responsibilities of the EMC and Deputies.   If interested in either of these roles, please leave a message at the Connoquenessing Borough office or contact us via our Facebook page.

Local Partner Organizations

-         Butler Ambulance Service

-         Butler County Emergency Services (County EMA & 9-1-1 Center)

-         Connoquenessing Volunteer Fire Company

-         Evans City Area Volunteer Fire Department

-         Harmony EMS

-         National Weather Service, Pittsburgh

-         Pennsylvania State Police - Troop D

 

Links & Information

-          “Ready PA“ - Pennsylvania Emergency Preparedness

-          “Ready.gov“ - Department of Homeland Security Disaster Preparedness

-         Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA)

-         Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

-         Kids Weather Safety Fact Sheet


 

Connoquenessing Valley Regional Emergency Management Agency

228 Constitution Avenue - P.O. BOX 91  -  Connoquenessing, PA 16027-0091