when disaster strikes
From COVID-19 to wildfires, emergency management professionals serve on the front lines of crisis
ISSUE 2 2021 | CSG CAPITOL IDEAS
by Trina Sheets, Executive Director, National Emergency Management Association (NEMA)
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By now it seems impossible to overstate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s lives. More than 500,000 Americans have died and virtually everyone has undergone significant changes to employment and daily routines. Emergency management professionals are no exception.
Since the early warning signs of a public health crisis appeared pointing to a potential outbreak, emergency managers have remained connected to their elected leadership at all levels of government. State emergency management agencies provide situational awareness to the governor while simultaneously serving as the conduit between local jurisdictions and applicable federal support in a disaster. The response to COVID-19 has provided unique challenges as the virus affected every state and required the coordination of such disparate activities as supply chain management and procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE), public information and messaging, vaccination logistics and navigating the process to access federal funding programs that support COVID-19 response activities. The frequent changes in guidance and rapid pace of change in the early months of the pandemic highlighted a need for proactive and solution-oriented information flow. The National Emergency Management Association (NEMA), an affiliate of The Council of State Governments, participated in that effort by developing a weekly report providing information on states’ actions to mitigate coronavirus spread. The report was disseminated broadly among state, federal and relevant private sector partners to help form a common operating picture. NEMA also
