Oregon sends 2nd team to help Hurricane Michael response

The Oregon Office of State Fire Marshal and Oregon Department of Forestry, through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, are working with Oregon’s Office of Emergency Management to support a request from the Florida Division of Emergency Management for a second All-Hazards Incident Management Team to support the response to Hurricane Michael.

The EMAC is a mutual aid agreement among states and territories of the United States. Essentially working as a mutual aid system, the agreement offers assistance during governor-declared state of emergency or disaster through a responsive, straightforward system. This system allows states to send personnel, equipment, and commodities to assist with response and recovery efforts in other states.

The OSFM IMT, led by Chief Ted Kunze, also includes staff from the Oregon Department of Forestry who are qualified within the Incident Command Structure.

“We value our working relationships and partnerships with fellow states agencies,” said Oregon Department of Forestry Interim Operations Manager Blake Ellis. “Florida has been there for us in our time of need, sending a full IMT to our aid during this year’s challenging fire season, and Oregon is fortunate to have the opportunity to return the favor”

The team heads to Florida Saturday morning and anticipates a full deployment of 14 days.

“We wish success to the team and will keep Florida in our thoughts as they recover from this devastating storm,” the fire marshal office’s announcement said.