The Somerset County Office of Emergency Management (SCOEM) is staffed by full-time and part-time employees including the Director that oversees the operations of the Emergency Management Division and the Emergency Services Training Academy Division. 

The duties of the office include the following:

• Emergency Management obligations
• Emergency Services Training Academy
• Hazardous Materials Response Team
• County Emergency Response Team (CERT)
• County Animal Response Team (CART)
• Search and Rescue Team (SAR)
• National Incident Management System (NIMS) Compliance
• Fire Coordination
• EMS Coordination
• Rescue Task Force
• Incident Support Team (IST)

The Office of Emergency Management is located in Hillsborough at the Emergency Services Training Academy.  By definition, the Emergency Management Director is responsible for the development, coordination and activation of countywide mutual aid and emergency management plans.  During an emergency, the office is responsible for the activation of county emergency management facilities and the coordination of resources available from Somerset County Government.  All of the county’s 21 municipalities have active municipal coordinators that are responsible for maintaining their local Emergency Operations Plans.

Hazmat Team

The Hazardous Materials Response Team functions under the oversight of SCOEM.  The team is comprised of an all-volunteer staff of county employees and local fire and EMS responders. The Team is involved in approximately 200 responses on an annual basis. Incidents range from minor leaks and spills to the complex problems of industrial releases and major transportation accidents.

Emergency Services Training Academy

The Somerset County Emergency Services Training Academy is also the responsibility of the OEM. The Academy Supervisor oversees an extensive roster of classes including basic fire fighting and EMS courses.  Additional courses such as Firefighter II, Fire Officer, EMS, Hazmat Awareness and Operations, and Search & Rescue are also conducted at the Academy.

The Academy training grounds consist of an administration building with 5 classrooms, a burn building with 3 burn simulators for live fire training, 5-story training tower for rappelling and ladder drills, smokehouse with moveable walls, and an outdoor classroom.  A drafting pond is also on site as well as large concrete pads for extrication drills and fire extinguisher training.  The Academy also conducts confined space training, railroad tank car simulations, and flashover training in a specially designed structures.