Department History

OEM was originally created as the Department of Civil Defense by legislative action in 1951. Soon after its creation, the Civil Defense agency and the Department of Emergency Resources Management were combined into one unified disaster aid organization, known as the Oklahoma Department of Civil Emergency Management. In 2003 the agency was renamed the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management. Today it is the central point of contact for coordination of four closely allied functions: Hazard Mitigation, Community Preparedness, Emergency Response and Disaster Recovery.