Municipal Emergency Management

Much of my professional career has been spent studying and optimizing municipalities for handling emergencies and disasters. I have worked on all facets of emergency communications and preparedness for numerous public safety agencies coast to coast. My experience covers all facets of system design, redundancy and interoperability. 

Epping Forest, Maryland - Hurricane Isabel, September, 2003

Epping Forest, located on the Chesapeake Bay, took a major hit from Hurricane Isabel. This storm caused heavy damage to the Clubhouse, Marina, Piers and Beach. In addition, many roads were blocked by the dozens of trees that were uprooted. Many homes, including mine, were heavily damaged by falling trees.
The entire first floor of the clubhouse had to be gutted, in addition, all kitchen and restaurant equipment was destroyed.

As President, I organized and prioritized the massive cleanup and restoration effort. Explored funding opportunities with FEMA and worked on securing loans for restoring our community assets as quickly as possible.

New York, New York - Hurricane Sandy, October, 2012

As a senior public safety consultant, I worked and participated from the PSAC/EOC/9-1-1 center during this once in a century storm.

New York City and its suburbs were severely affected by Hurricane Sandy on October 29–30, 2012. Sandy's impacts included the flooding of the New York City Subway system, the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel and many beach communities. The New York Stock Exchange closed for two consecutive days. Numerous homes and businesses were destroyed by fire, including over 100 homes in Breezy Point, Queens. Large parts of the city and surrounding areas lost electricity for several days. Several thousand people in midtown Manhattan were evacuated for six days due to a crane collapse at Extell's One57. Bellevue Hospital Center and a few other large hospitals were closed and evacuated. Flooding at 140 West Street and another exchange disrupted voice and data communication in lower Manhattan.

At least 43 people died in New York City as a result of the storm, including some trapped in multi-level underground garages which were completely filled by the storm tide.