Oregon Emergency Management is undergoing a major transition from being a division of the Oregon National Guard to now being a Department of Emergency Management reporting directly to the Governor of Oregon. Andrew Phelps, Director of Oregon’s Office of Emergency Management is the guest for this podcast.  In it he details some of the key factors that made that transition happen and how the move will impact their ability to more effectively provide emergency management services. It should be noted that they have doubled the size of their workforce! This change in organizational placement happened on July 1, 2022. For a brief summary of that move see this Disaster Zone Blog Post: Oregon Emergency Management Moves Under the Governor We also discuss the relationship between Andrew Phelps and Mike Harryman, the Oregon State Resilience Officer. To learn more about that position see a previous Disaster Zone Podcast, Oregon State Resilience Officer where he was interviewed.

This episode is sponsored by Unearth. Unearth’s emergency response software connects field responders and the command center, equipping teams with mobile tools for rapid damage assessments, real-time incident tracking, and seamless information sharing. Empower field teams where their work actually happens - reducing response times, optimizing resource management, and simplifying reporting with a dynamic, map-based field operations platform.Eric Holdeman is a professional emergency manager who is passionate about providing information that can help families, businesses & governments become better prepared for disasters of all types. Hear first hand expert insights from Eric on his Podcast, Blog & EricHoldeman.com.