What Is A COAD?
A COAD (Community Organization Active in Disaster) is a collaborative network of organizations, churches, agencies, individuals, businesses and others based within a community or geographic area (in this case Hancock County, Indiana) representing public, private and not-for-profit agencies, which work toward the mission of helping minimize the effects of a disaster.
A COAD will enhance the community’s ability to mitigate, prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters, thus ensuring that human needs are met to provide a safe, sanitary and secure community
What is the mission of a COAD?
The mission of a COAD is to strengthen area-wide disaster coordination by promoting advocacy and planning to reduce the impact of disasters including facilitating communication, coordination, collaboration and cooperation.
What is the benefit of a COAD?
No two disasters are alike. The impact on each victim is different. The needs of each are unique and often unmet. However, a community and its citizens are unquestionably better served if a COAD is in place for planning and education long before a disaster strikes.
Communities that bring resources together in a COAD can increase the effectiveness of their response to the needs of disaster survivors in a timely way, thereby reducing the social and economic impact of the disaster.