Emergency management hires communications officer, reports passing FEMA graded exercise

Claiborne County emergency management presented three items to the board Aug. 18: hiring a communications officer, advertising for an operations officer and a report on a recent FEMA graded exercise. The board approved hiring Demaya Gray as a communications officer at $14 per hour, increasing to $15 after required training, and authorized advertisement for an operations officer following the death of the prior hire. Nut graf: Emergency management said the county passed a FEMA graded exercise held Aug. 6; FEMA evaluators commended the county’s emergency operations center and coordinated response and suggested the county elevate the county public information officer’s role in joint-information operations. What was reported Emergency Management Director Ratliff told the board that FEMA gave Claiborne County a passing grade for the exercise and had no written findings. Evaluators praised joint operations and noted elected-official participation. The evaluators recommended that the county’s public information officer take a more prominent lead in joint information center activities to reflect that the plan was county-led. Actions Motion to hire communications officer Demaya Gray was made by Supervisor Odom, seconded by Supervisor Hudson; the chair called the motion carried. Motion to advertise for an operations officer was approved. The board accepted the exercise report and recognized staff for the successful graded exercise. Ending Director Ratliff said he would follow up on the FEMA recommendations and coordinate any adjustments to public-information responsibilities before future exercises.