Base, community emergency management teams build stronger bonds

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  • By 14th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
Thirty-nine representatives from 21 base functions and 15 community, county, regional and state organizations gathered during the Regional Emergency Planning Committee Icebreaker Event Sept. 26 at the Columbus Event Center here.

Representatives from the Navy; Air National Guard; Mississippi Emergency Management Agency; AmeriCorps; Federal Aviation Administration; and Monroe, Clay and Oktibbeha counties -- among other organizations -- gathered to discuss possible ways to forge stronger emergency management relationships with regional and state agencies.

The REPC is a product of the Secretary of the Air Force’s Public-Public, Public-Private Partnership initiative. The community has been working this P4 initiative together since earlier in the summer during a sequence of workshops facilitated by a team from the Pentagon.

The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern) Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer briefing to wing leadership is required annually and instead of just providing it to commanders this year, Columbus AFB capitalized on the opportunity to share the topic, Defense Support to Civil Authorities, with their state and civil emergency management counterparts. The goal was to help everyone involved have a better understanding of the operations between federal and civil assistance in the event of a large scale man-made or natural disaster, such as Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

Additionally, Dave Snider, from MEMA's Field Response Team, provided an overview of MEMA operations and their after-action report from the Marine KC-130 crash in Leflore County, Mississippi, earlier this summer. It was a learning opportunity for all emergency managers in the local area, and showed how civilian and military response are integrated.

Albert McCray, the FAA's Aviation Safety Inspector, also shared vital information on the growing policy for unmanned aerial systems and how they can legally be used in support of emergency situations.