Get Involved and Volunteer

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 jones@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.

Medical Reserve Corp (MRC)

The Medical Reserve Corps is a community-based, civilian volunteer program that helps build the public health and disaster response infrastructure of communities nationwide. MRC units help organize, train, and use local volunteers who choose to donate their time and expertise to promote healthy living and public health initiatives and prepare for and respond to public health and other emergencies.

MRC volunteers supplement existing local emergency and public health resources; volunteers include medical and public health professionals and other non-medical community members who fill vital support positions. Each MRC unit is organized and trained to address a wide range of all-hazards challenges from public health education to disaster response. As of August 2013, more than 980 MRC units and 270,000 volunteers existed nationwide. Each unit varies in size and functionality. Some MRC units are housed within local health departments (LHDs), universities, or emergency management agencies— other MRC units have organized as their own standing 501(c)3 organization. For more information about the MRC, please visit www.medicalreservecorps.gov.

Our Mission

Our four core missions are:

• Support of the MeCDC Strategic National Stockpile, Mass Dispensing –Points Of Dispensing System (PODS)
• Support of community-wide routine immunization efforts
• A Functional Assessment Services Team to support the CCEMA Regional Disaster Sheltering Initiative along with partnering with the ARC to support certain additional regional disaster sheltering needs. 
• Alternate Care Sites to include supporting hospitals and a Federal Medical Station Deployment, with staffing needs

For more information about the MRC, please contact Ron Jones, CCEMA MRC Unit Coordinator at 207-892-6785 or jones@cumberlandcounty.org.

Virtual Operation Support Team (VOST)

VOST is a team of trusted agents that are organized and directed by emergency management response organizations. VOST helps to organize, train, and engage volunteers who wish to put their technology and social media skills to use during emergencies and disasters.  

VOST assists with social media and web-based missions to enhance situational awareness. Because volunteers can be activated remotely, Cumberland County VOST may assist with missions in Cumberland County and beyond as requested.

VOST volunteers must have familiarity with, and accounts to access social media applications, as well as online collaboration tools (such as Gmail, Slack, and Google Sheets). 

For more information about VOST, or to request a volunteer application, please contact Emily Kaster, CCEMA VOST Coordinator at vost@cumberlandcounty.org.

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. 

Southern Maine Community Organizations Active in Disaster (SMCOAD)

SMCOAD is an organization of people and businesses who have come together with three goals in mind.

• To provide the public with disaster preparedness information
• To operate a Volunteer Reception Center if a disaster were to occur. This allows volunteers to register and receive meaningful jobs that match their skills during disaster response.
• To assist in coordinating a disaster recovery plan by bringing together private partnerships to assist those who need help.

By coming together in times without disaster, we can learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses and help fill in any gaps in supports that might occur when people need help the most.

To learn more or get involved, please visit the SMCOAD Website.

Youth Fire Safety & Intervention Collaborative

• EMA Internships