NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Feb. 16, 2023) – When natural disasters and emergencies strike, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District stands ready to join an immediate response to help people and communities recover.
Emergency Management Section Chief Jerry Breznican leads a dedicated team that includes Kevin Gatlin, Sharon Rader, Dee Rivera, and Adrienne Bostic. They are in the business of preparedness in support of emergency management missions, none more important than coordinating with the Department of the Army, U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Tennessee Emergency Management Agency to match skillsets with appropriate requirements and taskings in the wake of a disaster or to support an overseas contingency.
The emergency management team organizes and advises the workforce that volunteers, prepares and deploys. In disaster responses, employees typically respond as assigned with one of three teams – the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Emergency Management Support Team, Emergency Technical Support Team, or Deployable Tactical Operations System.
Breznican said every member of the Emergency Management team plays an important role in the administration and execution of the program, and supporting personnel that are called to deploy.
“Emergency Management must remain vigilant and flexible in order to maintain our team strengths and capabilities,” Breznican said.
The organization’s commitment to helping affected communities in their time of need is demonstrated by its accreditation in the Emergency Management Accreditation Program, also known as “EMAP.” The Nashville District is certified for five years, and the program’s 66 standards are assessed every year.
“Out of 40 emergency management organizations within the Corps, only 18 were able, or willing, to go through the grueling task of accreditation,” Breznican said. “Recently, we were selected as a ‘pilot’ district to test a new initiative to test EM programs called the Corps of Engineers Emergency Management Standardization Program, or ‘CEems.’”
Rader, an emergency management specialist, is one shining example of a team member that handles lots of administrative tasks. She assists employees that are tasked to deploy with funding, timesheets, and travel requirements.
“Once an employee has arrived at their deployment destination, I turn over the travel orders to each team member’s admin, but continue to work with them for all the specifics until they return home,” Rader said. “I also help with purchasing for the Roofing and DTOS teams with the funding that is provided.”
Rivera who is culminating six years on the team as an emergency management specialist, is another team member that manages funding for the office and for several other critical emergency management missions.
“I’ve handled millions in FEMA funding for Emergency Management’s response to multiple tornadoes, COVID-19 response, and the Waverly, Tennessee, flooding. I also manage funding for our personnel,” Rivera said.
Kevin Gatlin, Natural Disaster Program manager, said Nashville District Emergency Management and employees have supported temporary roofing missions in response to disasters in 2017 and 2020, and has deployed the DTOS (emergency command and control vehicles) 37 times since 2017.
Gatlin manages the DTOS vehicles, temporary roofing mission, liaisons in the district, and Emergency Management Technical Support Team. He emphasized that one of the team’s basic missions is working with the workforce to volunteer to be on standby, to train and prepare, and to assist them with deploying.
“I work with personnel who deploy on emergency response missions to make sure they have what they need to deploy as well as make sure all their information is up to date in our computer system called ENGLink,” Gatlin said.
Recruiting volunteers to support deployments is another aspect of the Emergency Management mission. The team briefs new employees about opportunities to support missions and to draw interest in volunteering. They learn about the deployment process, what they need to do to volunteer, and even visit a dam project where they get to see an emergency command and control vehicle.
Breznican, who has led the team for 15 years, oversees the ongoing work in the office, but also keeps constant contact with higher headquarters, FEMA, and TEMA officials, and provides support to all internal and external stakeholders. As he engages in top level planning and execution of emergency management requirements, he said his team ensures employees are trained and ready to respond when tasked.
“The whole team is professional, hardworking, and attentive to supporting Emergency Management and the needs of our workforce,” Breznican said. “They have a vital job with far-reaching impact for our region and nation. I’m just very proud of their efforts, which directly helps people that are affected by natural disasters and emergencies.”
Emergency Management also credits Karen Halter in Resource Management for her work as a timekeeper in support of the various missions and employees.
“She receives timesheets for everyone that deploys, makes sure they are correct, and ensures that they get paid, Gatlin said. “Karen also helps Emergency Management with administrating the travel and time portion in our ‘All Hazards Plan.’”
Communication is key to the success of any emergency response, Breznican stressed, and Emergency Management is the reporting hub for responses within the Nashville District.
(For more information about the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District, visit the district’s website at http://www.lrn.usace.army.mil on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/nashvillecorps, and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/nashvillecorps.)
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