Section 4-2-1. Policy and Purpose.

Dangers from accidents, natural disasters, criminal acts and other abnormal or unexpected events present a threat to the public peace, health, safety and general welfare. The City Council, therefore, has determined that the City of Northglenn establish and maintain a local disaster agency as described in Colorado Disaster Emergency Act of 1992, part 21 of article 32 of title 24, C.R.S. 1992, as amended. Except as provided in this Chapter, City departments shall continue to exercise the responsibilities and authority specified in the City Charter or by ordinance.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003]

Section 4-2-2. Definitions. As used in this article:

"Office" shall mean the Office of Emergency Management as authorized and empowered in Section 4-2-3.

"Director" shall mean the Director of Emergency Management as authorized and empowered by Section 4-2-3.

"Emergency functions" shall mean those activities necessitated by an unusual occurrence which shall include, by way of illustration but not limitation, firefighting services, police services, medical and health services, search and rescue operations, engineering services, warning operations, communications, radiation or hazardous chemical detection or decontamination, evacuation operations, repair operations, welfare services, debris removal, public utility restoration, volunteer and donation management, public information services, and all other similar, related or incidental activities for implementing and completing such functions.

"Emergency Management" shall mean the acts in planning and preparation for, the mitigation of, the response to or the recovery from an emergency or unusual event.

"Plan" shall mean the most recent provisions of the Northglenn Emergency Plan.

"Unusual occurrence" shall mean and include one or more of the events described in Section 4-2-1(a) when proclaimed a disaster or an emergency by the governor of the state or the Mayor of the City of Northglenn, or other situation demanding coordination of multi-jurisdictional resources or otherwise deemed an unusual occurrence or emergency by the Director or the Director's designee.

For the purpose of this Chapter, all definitions found in C.R.S. § 24-32-2103 apply as definitions to this Chapter, except that "Emergency" shall include the terms disaster and disaster emergency as the context may require.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003; 1824, 2022]

Section 4-2-3. Director of Emergency Management.

The City Manager shall be the Director of Emergency Management who shall also serve as the Director of Civil Defense pursuant to Section 6.10 of the City Charter. The Director shall have the authority to plan, coordinate and command all local emergency functions. The Director shall be responsible for updating the Northglenn Emergency Plan and for training local public and private agencies in responding to unusual occurrences or emergencies pursuant to the Plan. If the City Manager is unavailable to act as the Director of Emergency Management, the Deputy City Manager shall serve as Director. If the Deputy City Manager is unavailable to act as Director of Emergency Management, the Chief of Police shall serve as Director.

In the event of an unusual occurrence or emergency in which the governor of the state or the Mayor of the City has declared or proclaimed a disaster directly affecting the City, or indirectly affecting the City through mutual aid agreements, the Director may:

Utilize all available resources of the City as reasonably necessary to cope with the disaster emergency,

Assume the direction of all personnel or functions of the City for the purpose of performing or facilitating emergency services or for implementing the provisions of the Emergency Plan or this article,

Subject to any applicable requirements for compensation under Section 24-33.5-711, Colorado Revised Statutes, commandeer or utilize any private property deemed necessary to cope with the disaster emergency,

Direct and compel the evacuation of all or part of the population from any stricken or threatened area within the City if such action is necessary for the preservation of life or other disaster mitigation, response or recovery,

Prescribe routes, modes of transportation, and destinations in connection with evacuation,

Control ingress to, and egress from, a disaster area, the movement of persons within the area, and the occupancy of premises therein by imposing a curfew or by other appropriate means,

Suspend or limit the sale, dispensing, or transportation of alcoholic beverages, firearms, explosives, or combustibles; and

Make provisions for the availability and use of temporary emergency housing.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003]

Section 4-2-4. Office of Emergency Management.

The Director shall establish an Office of Emergency Management.

The Director shall establish an Emergency Management Information System.

The Director shall appoint a Deputy Director who shall be the Emergency Program Manager. The Emergency Program Manager's duties shall include, but not be limited to, directing and managing the day to day operations of the Office of Emergency Management, coordinating all emergency management planning and training, coordination and publication of the Northglenn Emergency Plan to include any annexes and appendices thereto, operating the Emergency Management Information System, coordinating inter-governmental agreements or mutual aid agreements as necessary or directed, and providing advice on emergency management to the Director and City Council as required.

The Director shall provide for the establishment and operation of an Emergency Operations Center.

The Office of Emergency Management may seek the advice of other local, state and federal governmental agencies, business, labor, industry, agriculture, civic and volunteer organizations, and community leaders in developing responses to particular unusual occurrences or emergencies, and such plans for responding shall be incorporated into the Northglenn Emergency Plan.

In the event of an unusual occurrence or emergency, the Office of Emergency Management shall advise the Mayor and Council of their authority under this article and the Northglenn Emergency Plan, and the Office of Emergency Management shall respond to the unusual occurrence or emergency pursuant to this article and the Plan.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003]

Section 4-2-5. Mutual Aid Agreements.

The Director may negotiate and develop mutual aid agreements with other public and private agencies, organizations and corporations within the state. Such agreements shall outline plans for reciprocal aid and assistance in the event of an unusual occurrence of such magnitude that it becomes unmanageable by a single agency alone, or of an unusual occurrence arising within the jurisdictions of both agencies.

The City Council shall approve all mutual aid agreements and such agreements shall coincide with the provisions of the Colorado Disaster Emergency Act, the Northglenn Emergency Plan, and this article. In the event of an unusual occurrence, the Director shall order that aid and assistance be rendered in accordance with the provisions of such applicable mutual aid agreements as approved by Council.

This section is intended as a supplement the provisions of CRS 24-32-2107.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003]

Section 4-2-6. Emergency Powers of the Mayor.

In the event of an unusual occurrence, the Mayor of the City of Northglenn, or in the Mayor's absence the Mayor Pro Tem, may declare or proclaim a local disaster at which time the Director shall undertake appropriate responses pursuant to the Emergency Plan, mutual aid agreements, and this article.

Once the Mayor, pursuant to Section 4-2-6(a), or the governor of the state, pursuant to state statutes, has declared a disaster, which affects the City of Northglenn directly, or indirectly through mutual aid agreements, the provisions of this Article shall apply.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003; 1824, 2022]

Section 4-2-7. Emergency Powers of Council.

In the event of an unusual occurrence, the City Council may authorize the Mayor or Director to enter into contracts, incur obligations, or utilize the City's resources in order to facilitate emergency functions or mutual aid agreements.

The City Council may continue or extend for longer than seven (7) days any executive proclamation of a local disaster made by the Mayor pursuant to Section 4-2-6(a). The City Council may terminate at any time any executive proclamation or declaration of a local disaster made by the Mayor.

[Source: Ord. 1344, 2003]