Emergency operations center

An emergency operations center (EOC), also known as an office of emergency management (OEM), is a central command and control facility responsible for carrying out the principles of emergency response, emergency preparedness, emergency management, and disaster management functions at a strategic level during an emergency, and ensuring the continuation of operation of a municipality, company, public or emergency service, or other organization. Sometimes, the EOC may also be responsible for emergency dispatching.

EOCs, originally created as part of United States civil defense, can be found in many nations, at all government levels, as well as in larger corporations that deal with large equipment or numbers of employees. In corporations and smaller jurisdictions, the EOC may be co-located in the same room as an emergency communications center.

An EOC is responsible for strategic direction and operational decisions and does not normally directly control field assets, instead leaving tactical decisions to lower commands. The common functions of EOCs is to collect, gather and analyze data; make decisions that protect life and property, maintain continuity of the organization, within the scope of applicable laws; and disseminate those decisions to all concerned agencies and individuals.

When an EOC is operated in a vehicle such as a truck or trailer, or is otherwise capable of moving quickly (or being operated while moving), it is usually called a mobile command center (MCC) or mobile command unit (MCU).