-
Jim Shelton, Blaine County Emergency Manager, accepts a plaque from Lynn Gould. Shelton was awarded March 5 as the Northwestern Oklahoma Emergency Manager of the Year at the Northwestern Oklahoma Emergency Management Workshop in Enid. He will go on to compete for the state award, which will be made in August. Lynn Gould I Watonga Republican
Blaine County Emergency Manager and Geary Fire Chief Jim Shelton has been named the Northwest Oklahoma Emergency Manager of the year March 5 at the NWEM workshop March 5 in Enid.
Shelton, who has been the emergency manager for Blaine County for four years, was recognized at the gathering and presented with a plaque for his accomplishments.
Winners of emergency manager of the year at the district level will now be evaluated for the statewide title of emergency manager of the year. That award is accompanied by a plaque and the winner will be announced in August.
Emergency management consists of emergency response, response planning, hazard mitigation and compliance measures. The office may be faced with creating community vaccination programs in the event of a localized disease or virus outbreak, maintaining emergency communications networks for use during extended power outages, sending first responders to natural disasters on a schedule that ensures emergency coverage of the local area or determining what steps to take to prevent an emergency from happening in the first place, such as installation of flood control measures or removal of limbs that could become ice covered and break, causing powerline devastation and widespread power outages.
Connie Burcham can be reached at Editor@WatongaRepublican.com