Harris County Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management Releases 2023 Annual Report
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 16, 2024
Contact: Liz Lawhorn, 713-426-9578
Harris County Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management Releases 2023 Annual Report
Houston, Texas — The Harris County Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management (HCOHSEM) is pleased to release its 2023 Annual Report.
HCOHSEM works year-round engaging in collaborative planning and promoting community resilience. “We will continue to work to strengthen our efforts to improve preparedness and enhance resiliency across our region,” said Harris County Emergency Management Coordinator Mark Sloan. “As we move into hurricane season, we remind residents that it only takes one storm to make it a bad season.”
Last year, HCOHSEM activated the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) multiple times for severe weather, including a tornado in January, extreme summer heat, continued support of the COVID-19 response, and other major special events. On June 15, 2023, after 1,201 days of activation, the EOC returned to Level 4 – Normal Readiness following the end to all declarations related to the COVID-19 pandemic for the State of Texas.
HCOHSEM continued to be heavily engaged in various regional and local initiatives in 2023 including the 2023 Reimagining the Future of Disaster Recovery Summit and the Texas Division of Emergency Management ’s (TDEM) Region 2 Hurricane Indigo Exercise. Emphasis on cross-sector collaborations alongside HCOHSEMs robust outreach programs help increase community resilience throughout the county.
“Our office will maintain our focus and momentum on collaborative planning and extensive public outreach to ensure that our community is better prepared for the next disaster.” added Sloan.
The report summarizes HCOHSEM’s operations and key accomplishments during the past year. Click here to view the 2023 Annual Report.
ABOUT HCOHSEM
HCOHSEM is a national model of best practices in emergency planning, preparation, response, and recovery. HCOHSEM helps prepare, safeguard, and protect the residents and property of Harris County from the effects of disasters through effective planning, preparation, response, and recovery activities.
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