E Team is collaborative software for crisis management from E Team, Inc., and CACI is a strategic partner with the company. The State of New Jersey deployed the E Team solution to extend its crisis management capabilities and to share incident data among state agencies. The software was deployed in 2004 for the State's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and activated for the Republican National Convention and floods in four New Jersey counties.
The expanded system will link agencies and departments throughout the state to manage everyday incidents and large-scale events. It will connect the New Jersey State Police Office of Emergency Management with all 21 counties and state agencies, including the Department of Health and Senior Services, Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs, Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Transportation, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the New Jersey National Guard.
"The software has dramatically improved our effectiveness by providing real-time situation updates among a variety of agencies from the local to the national level," said Lieutenant Colonel Lori Hennon-Bell, commander of the New Jersey State Police Homeland Security Bureau. "The benefits were most apparent during the Republican National Convention, when the system enabled us to share online information instantaneously with our New Jersey partners, New York City's Office of Emergency Management, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, all of whom utilize the system."
Under the new contract, the system will be ready in part for use during the TOPOFF III (Top Officials) exercise in April 2005. TOPOFF III is the third of a congressionally directed national series of exercises focusing on weapons of mass destruction (WMD). It will simulate a terrorist campaign with simulated attacks using WMD in the states of Connecticut and New Jersey.
"It's important to tie together communications for all of the emergency managers throughout the state to give us a clear picture of each incident as it is developing," said Chris Scaturo, deputy coordinator of Emergency Management for Union County, New Jersey. "It gives all of us the ability to properly plan and respond to any situation because of the rapid exchange of information."
Christopher Bonin, Homeland Security program manager from CACI's Eatontown, New Jersey offices, added, "The system provides a geographic view of the status of all incidents and critical infrastructure in the area of operations. Jurisdictions such as counties and cities, as well as key state agencies, keep the state Emergency Operations Center up to date on their status by submitting online situation reports. Further, the system has a logistics support engine that allows the state to monitor resources and deploy them rapidly in response to requests from front-line responders and county emergency management partners."
