The Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP) opened its doors in June 1998, as a training center for the Nation’s emergency responders. The CDP’s mission is to train emergency response providers from state, local, and tribal governments, as well as the federal government, foreign governments, and private entities, as available. The scope of training includes preparedness, protection, and response. 

CDP training for state, local, and tribal responders is fully funded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. International, Federal, and private sector responders may participate in CDP training on a space available, fee-for-service basis. 

Training partnerships at the Federal and State levels enable the CDP staff to take advantage of shared knowledge, to ensure the Nation’s responders receive the most up-to-date training. The CDP’s interdisciplinary resident and non- resident training courses promote greater understanding among these diverse responder disciplines: Emergency Management, Emergency Medical Services, Fire Service, Governmental Administrative, Hazardous Materials, Healthcare, Law Enforcement, Public Health, Public Safety Communications, and Public Works. 

At the Chemical, Ordnance, Biological and Radiological Training Facility (COBRATF), the CDP offers the only program in the Nation featuring civilian training exercises in a toxic chemical agent environment. The advanced, hands-on training enables responders to effectively respond to real-world incidents involving chemical, biological, explosive, radiological, or other hazardous materials. Responders serve as the Nation’s first line of defense and deserve the highest-quality training available. 

On March 31, 2007, the Noble Training Facility (NTF) was integrated into the CDP training center. In 1999, the former Noble Army Hospital was converted into a training site for health and medical education in disasters, to include both acts of terrorism and manmade disasters. The NTF is the only hospital facility in the United States dedicated solely to training hospital and healthcare professionals in disaster preparedness and response. The facility includes classrooms, break-out rooms, exercise and simulation areas, a resource center, computer lab, and two prototype mass casualty decontamination training lanes. 

Responders from all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories have trained at the CDP.



“FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.”
 




“FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.”