Post-Pandemic Emergency Management Division Update

ON THIS EPISODE:  We touch base with Emergency Management to discuss their hands-on experience working through the pandemic and what their division's goals look like moving forward.

This last year has been different than any other for Emergency Management. A 5.7 earthquake, the windstorm, civil unrest and of course, the COVID-19 pandemic has kept everyone working hard as we dealt with many unknowns.

The positive for them through this has been the opportunity to use all that's learned in FEMA classes to be prepared for these emergencies.

Operations Unit Leader/Captain Chet Ellis emphasized how we train for short-term instances that are days to weeks. The pandemic presented the new factor of a long-term instance, with it being over a year since their work began.

Through this challenge, they have still seen a lot of success. The processes worked and their partnership with the health department has been largely effective in coordinating vaccine efforts.

On the horizon for EM:  continued recovery from the pandemic, earthquake and windstorm; an expected busy fire season, as Utah is in a state of emergency due to a continued drought; and getting back into the groove of training that has been on hold.

Episode recorded April 4, 2021.

GUESTS:

• Emergency Management Division Chief Clint Mecham
• Captain / Operations Unit Leader Chet Ellis
• PIO / JIC Manager Tina Brown
• EM Project Coordinator Valerie Greensides

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