Emergency Management

Coronavirus Information

Below are some official webpages/websites that provide additional information regarding the coronavirus outbreak:
- PA Department of Health - https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/Pages/Coronavirus.aspx
- Centers for Disease Control - https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/index.html
- Johns Hopkins Center for Systems Science and Engineering - 
https://systems.jhu.edu/research/public-health/ncov/
- Johns Hopkins CSSE Coronavirus Worldwide GIS Dashboard -
https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6


About the Lancaster County Emergency Management Agency



Lancaster County Emergency Management Agency(LEMA) is located in Manheim, which is in northern Lancaster County. We are co-located with Lancaster Countywide Communications, the county’s 911 call center. Emergency Management has seven full time employees. The staff positions consist of:
  • Administrative assistant
  • Deputy coordinator
  • Emergency management coordinator (department director)
  • Emergency medical services coordinator
  • Hazardous materials administrator
  • Nuclear preparedness planner / trainer
  • Training officer


History of the Department


Emergency Management, formerly known as Civil Defense, was created by the Civil Defense Act of 1950. The primary responsibility at that time was to plan and prepare for nuclear attack. As time went on, and the threat of attack subsided, a restructuring took place.

In 1979, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was created, which consolidated five federal agencies that were dealing with several types of emergencies. Since that time, many state and local organizations, including Lancaster County, have accepted this approach and changed to the emergency management structure.

Along with the change came a new approach in preparedness: no longer was planning done for single or narrowly defined categories of hazards, but towards an all hazards approach, including attack, natural, and technological threats.

Emergency Plans


The Lancaster County Emergency Management Agency maintains emergency plans for facilities that use or produce hazardous materials, as well as plans for:
  • Dam failures
  • Flooding
  • Nuclear facilities
  • Several other types of man made or natural disasters
The office’s primary responsibility is to provide support and coordination to local municipalities and all emergency service organizations such as fire, police, and emergency medical services during large and small incident and events as needed. This support and coordination is performed at the emergency operations center located within our facility. These activities are performed in close cooperation with the county commissioners and local elected officials when needed.