Emergency Preparedness

Emergency Management Coordinator

The City of Englewood partners with the Arapahoe County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) to coordinate training and planning for emergencies in Englewood.

OEM’s Purpose

Emergency Management provides a layer of support to the response to large, complex disasters. They are activated during large natural or man-made disasters in which the normal system of first responders is stressed, insufficient or overwhelmed.

Before disaster strikes, the Office of Emergency Management works on prevention and mitigation to reduce the impacts of disasters.

Emergency management works with county departments, local governments, volunteer organizations and the private sector across the Denver Metro Area to prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.

What Can Residents do to Be Prepared? - Make a Plan!

Families

  • Sign up for Emergency Alerts!
  • Create an emergency plan that includes an evacuation place and points of contact. Most people have the phone numbers of those they live with but what about nearby relatives who you might shelter with?
  • Rather than evacuate, you might be asked to shelter-in-place. Do you have supplies you’d need if you had to stay in your home for 48 hours?
  • Having these supplies in a bag means you could use them whether you’re sheltering-in-place or evacuating.
  • Food, water and medications are necessities but consider adding things like a local map, flashlight and batteries, toys/books to occupy children and toiletries.
  • Ensure all mature family members know how to turn off utilities.

Children

  • Ask your school or daycare what their plan is and how they will reach you in an emergency.
  • Create secondary plans for your children if you can’t reach them.
  • Teach your children how to call 911 as well as their name, your name, phone number and address.

Pets

  • If evacuated, make sure your shelter accepts pets.
    • By law, all public shelters must accept service animals.
  • Include pet items (ID and medication, litter box, comfort items) in your emergency kit.
  • Ask your kennel or vet if they have recommendations to your specific situation.

Businesses

  • Businesses need some of the same preparations (sheltering-in-place and evacuation planning) but they should practice these tasks more often as new employees come onboard.
  • Make a plan! The US Small Business Administration has great resources for a wide-variety of emergencies.

Emergency Notification System

Sign up for ArapAlert Emergency Notifications

Whether you live, work, or have children attending school in Arapahoe County, signing up for ArapAlert is one of the most important steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved ones. You’ll receive notifications through multiple channels—phone calls, text messages, email, and mobile app push notifications— having multiple methods increases the likelihood of receiving a notification during an emergency.

Arapahoe County, CO Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan

Update - The 2025 Arapahoe County Hazard Mitigation Plan is Ready for Public Review

This plan identifies strategies to reduce or eliminate long-term risks to people and property from disasters and hazardous events. By taking action before disasters occur, communities can lessen or prevent their impacts. The 2025 update was developed collaboratively by jurisdictions across Arapahoe County.

The link below leads you to a virtual room where you will have the opportunity to understand the value of mitigation, educate about hazards in their community using maps, read the entire plan and provide feedback. The deadline for feedback is Monday, November 10, 2025.

Go to the Virtual Room Here

Declared Disasters

Other Resources

The following links contain practical information to help your family prepare for disasters: