Department Divisions

The Tennessee Emergency Management Authority is organized into four main divisions that support the department’s emergency management mission. Each division plays a role in helping Tennessee prepare for, respond to, recover from, and reduce the impacts of emergencies and disasters.

Together, these divisions support local communities, coordinate state resources, manage emergency operations, administer programs, and strengthen emergency management capabilities across Tennessee.

Administration and Mission Support

The Administration and Mission Support Division provides the administrative, financial, logistical, and operational support needed to carry out TEMA’s mission.

This division supports the department’s internal operations and helps ensure staff, facilities, systems, equipment, and resources are available to support emergency management activities. Its work includes financial management, human resources, procurement, facilities support, logistics, telecommunications, grants administration, and other mission support functions.

Administration and Mission Support helps keep the department ready to operate during steady-state conditions and emergency activations.

Field Services and Operations

The Field Services and Operations Division supports emergency coordination, situational awareness, and direct communication with local emergency management partners across Tennessee.

This division includes key operational functions that help the state monitor incidents, coordinate response activities, support resource requests, and maintain communication with local jurisdictions and partner agencies. Field Services staff work closely with county emergency management agencies and local governments to provide coordination, guidance, and support before, during, and after emergencies.

Tennessee is supported through four TEMA regional offices: West, Middle, East, and Southeast. These regional offices include district coordinators who are assigned to specific counties and work directly with local jurisdictions. District coordinators help maintain strong relationships between the department and local emergency management partners, support preparedness activities, assist with incident coordination, and help connect local needs with state resources.

The division also supports the State Emergency Operations Center and Watch Point, Tennessee’s 24-hour notification and communication point for emergency incidents and events.

Preparedness

The Preparedness Division helps build and maintain emergency management capabilities across the state through planning, training, exercises, technical hazards coordination, and readiness programs.

This division supports state and local emergency planning efforts, administers emergency management training, coordinates exercises, and helps evaluate preparedness activities. Preparedness also supports specialized planning for technical hazards, including radiological emergency preparedness and other complex risks that require coordinated planning and response.

The division’s work helps ensure emergency management partners have plans, procedures, training, and tested capabilities in place before disasters occur.

Recovery and Mitigation

The Recovery and Mitigation Division helps communities recover from disasters and reduce the impacts of future hazards.

This division coordinates disaster recovery programs, supports damage assessment activities, administers public assistance and hazard mitigation programs, and works with local, state, federal, nonprofit, and community partners to support long-term recovery. Recovery and Mitigation also helps communities identify actions that can reduce future disaster losses and strengthen resilience over time.

The division’s work supports both immediate recovery needs after a disaster and long-term investments that help Tennessee communities become safer and more resilient.

Working Together

Emergency management requires coordination across many programs, partners, and levels of government. TEMA’s divisions work together to support a statewide emergency management system that is ready to respond when emergencies occur and committed to helping communities recover and reduce future risk.

Through administration, operations, preparedness, recovery, and mitigation, TEMA helps strengthen Tennessee’s ability to prepare for emergencies, coordinate response, support recovery, and build resilience.