Wayne County Emergency Management Agency-Homeland Security Office
Angela Atchison, Director
Milton Martin, Deputy Director
Address: Wayne County Emergency Operations Center, 615 Court Street, Waynesboro, MS 39367
Telephone: 601-735-2184
Email: aatchison@waynecountyms.gov
Who we are
The Wayne County Emergency Management Agency-Homeland Security Office, formerly Civil Defense, works to address issues of:
- Preparedness, including first-responder planning, resource management and training before an emergency.
- Response during or immediately following an event.
- Recovery follows an event and can last for days or months depending on the severity of the emergency.
- Mitigation to lessen the effects of a hazard impacting lives, homes and property.
Technical or man-made hazards
Technical or man-made hazards are those that involve things — like chemicals, toxins, corrosives and explosives — created by mankind to make daily life more convenient. Hazardous materials in their raw form can be dangerous to the public, if exposed to them. Exposure can occur at a fixed facility, plant site or storage location or on a transportation route involving carriers on rail, highway, air and pipelines.
Natural hazards
These hazards occur in nature, and there is little, if anything, that can be done to prevent them, such as earthquakes, flooding, severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, tropical storms and hurricane and winter storms.
Partnering agencies
The Wayne County Emergency Management Agency-Homeland Security coordinates its efforts and response with partners at the federal, regional and state levels, including:
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA)
Federal Department of Homeland Security
Mississippi Office of Homeland Security
American Red Cross (Hurricane preparedness)
Ready.gov (pre-disaster planning)
Local Emergency Planning Committee
The Wayne County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) is a federally mandated entity composed of state, regional and local officials, first responders, health care facilities, business representatives and members of the press.
The LEPC is a resource for enhancing hazardous materials and natural disasters preparedness. Local governments are responsible for the integration of hazmat planning and disaster response within their respective jurisdictions. This includes a comprehensive local hazards analysis adequately addressing a litany of potential incidents, training responders and exercising the response plans.
The Wayne County LEPC meets at 10 a.m., on the third Friday of each month at the Wayne General Hospital Wellness Center Conference Room.
9-1-1 communications
Wayne County’s 9-1-1 system routes the appropriate law enforcement, fire protection and/or emergency medical response unit to each citizen’s emergency call for assistance. As dedicated public servants, our dispatchers are committed to answering calls for service with the highest standards of skill and practice by showing empathy, integrity, respect and professionalism.
Calls for assistance are dispatched to the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department, Wayne County Volunteer Fire Department, Waynesboro Police Department, Waynesboro Fire Department and Wayne General Hospital Emergency Medical Services-Ambulance.
The local 9-1-1 system operates with a state-of-the-art communications network based on an 800 MHz, digital trunking radio system that makes reliable county-wide communications possible.
Day or night, Wayne County’s 9-1-1 dispatchers are always on duty and ready to serve.