Mission Statement
The Office of Emergency Management’s mission is to preserve, maintain, or otherwise reconstitute the city government’s ability to carry out executive, legislative, and judicial processes when threatened by or following a major emergency or disaster.
The department plays a primary role in identifying and mitigating hazards and prepares for, responds to, and manages the recovery from emergency situations that affect our community.
Tornado Safety for Texans
Tornadoes can occur at any time of the year in Texas, but they are most likely to occur in the spring and summer. The City of Garland Office of Emergency Management and the Texas Division of Emergency Management urges citizens to learn what to do when a tornado is sighted. The most important rule is to get low and stay low. The following are tornado safety tips:
Seek shelter in an interior room on the lowest floor of the home, such as a bathroom, closet, or room without windows.
Go to an interior room or hallway on the lowest floor of the office building, or to the designated shelter area.
Leave your mobile home and take shelter in a nearby building. If no building is nearby, lie flat in a ditch or ravine.
Never stay inside a car. Leave the car and lie flat in a ditch or a ravine. If a building is nearby, take shelter inside. Never try to outrun a tornado in your car.
At school, follow plans and go to a designated shelter area, usually, the school’s interior hallway on the lowest floor. Stay out of auditorium, gyms, and other areas with wide free-span roofs. If you are in a portable or manufactured building, go to a nearby permanent structure, or take cover outside on low, protected ground.
Go to the interior rooms and halls on the lowest floor of a shopping center. Do not leave the shopping center to get in your car.
If you are in open country, take cover on low, protected ground.
Avoid areas near exterior glass or doors, areas along exterior walls, or rooms with wide expanse roofs.
Learn the difference between a Tornado Watch and a Tornado Warning. A Tornado Watch means watch the sky. A Tornado Warning means a tornado is on the ground and you must seek shelter immediately.