About Will County EMA

Will County EMA was originally created as Civil Defense and later became Emergency Services and Disaster Agency.  The name of the department was changed to Will County Emergency Management (EMA) in January, 1992 to more accurately reflect its responsibilities.  The agency established within County Government is responsible for coordinating the emergency and disaster mitigation, as well as preparedness, planning, response and recovery efforts of the County and its political subdivisions in conjunction with the State of Illinois, private organizations, businesses, and the public.

Our Agency Staff
View a list of our Agency Staff.

Our Mission

Will County EMA accomplishes its mission through a wide array of programmatic efforts, including development of emergency plans; conduct of disaster exercises; development of emergency communications and warning systems; operations of specialized emergency response units; public awareness and education; and, guidance to local units of government.

Emergency Contact

For Emergency ONLY, call (815) 740-0911 - (i.e. during times of an emergency, urgent situations, or for notification of a chemical release under SARA Title III)

When you call the emergency number, we need the following information from you:

• Your name, the name of the organization you represent, and your telephone number including area code;
• The location of the incident (be specific);
• The nature of the incident. If the incident involves hazardous materials, provide the chemical name(s) and quantity involved;
• Actions underway at the present time; and,
• Whether you are requesting assistance or calling for notification purposes only. If requesting assistance, specify what is needed (i.e. Hazardous Materials Unit; Mobile Incident Command Vehicle; Search and Rescue Team; etc.)

Non-Emergency / Administration Office - (815) 740-8351
The Administration Office for the Will County Emergency Management Agency is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You may leave a voice mail message on this line after hours.

During the recovery period, after a federal or state declared disaster, that involves Will County, the after hours recording on the administration line will be updated with information and additional telephone numbers residents may need to help recover from the emergency/disaster.

For ALL other contact information, please visit our contact page.

Divisions Within the Agency
Some of our volunteer divisions that support the agency include:

• Field Service Division - functions include providing staffing of the communications center at the Will County Emergency Operations Center (EOC); severe weather spotting; auxiliary communications support; mobile incident command center response; traffic direction and control; mobile lighting and power; support to local agencies; and, special events.
• Special Hazards & Operations Team (SHOT) - volunteers of this division come from the fire service and private industry.  The team is trained in the operations, technician, specialist and incident command levels.  The team can provide technical support, containment, leak stoppage and diking for most all types of hazardous materials incidents.
• Search and Rescue (SAR) Team - volunteers specifically trained and certified in technical search and rescue in wilderness, suburban, disaster, vertical, and swiftwater / flood environments.  The SAR Team also has a specially trained search canine unit that utilizes dogs to search for missing persons.

If you have any questions, or would like more information about your Will County EMA, please contact our office.