EOC Emergency Preparedness Coordinator

St. James Parish Government is hiring for the position of Emergency Preparedness Coordinator.

JOB FUNCTION: To assist with providing supervision, guidance, support, and administration for all divisions within the Emergency Preparedness department. Core responsibilities include assisting the Director with the following: development and implementation of emergency response plans, evacuation plans and programs, maintain Emergency Operating Center (EOC), and manage emergency communications. This position maintains documents for compliance as required.

This position is a full time, permanent position of the parish. This position is non-exempt from the payment of overtime as defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Emergency Preparedness Coordinator is classified as essential during declared emergencies or natural disasters. This employee will normally work 40 hours per week Monday through Friday.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: These examples are intended only as illustration of the various types of work performed in this position. Absence of specific statements of duties does not exclude those tasks from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment of the position.

- Establishes specific goals and objectives for the Emergency Preparedness department; Assists in developing and implementing plans and organizational patterns to be used in the event of a disaster in the parish

- Report to EOC, when notified and/or activated and assume duties as assigned by the Director.

- Attend numerous training and meetings including, but not limited to, Haz-Mat Technician Recertification Training, Computer Training, Terrorism Training, Emergency Management Training and NIMS.

- Supervise testing of all other emergency alert and communications systems.

- Assist in the management of the 800 MHz Radio System and the Louisiana Wireless Infrastructure Network radio consoles including programming, repairs, and maintenance.

- Assist with maintenance of the 911 infrastructure.

- Develops plans and coordinates procedures to minimize the effects of disasters upon the population of St. James Parish; Confers with local officials, civic group leaders, and volunteer organization leaders on development of facilities plans and programs for protection of life and property.

- Tests operational plans and makes changes as deemed necessary. Plan and participate in training exercises to attain maximum personnel efficiency, to develop and coordinate operating procedures for the emergency operations center, and to locate and catalog equipment to be used during emergencies

- Responsible for implementing state and local shelter and evacuation plans and programs

- Prepares reports to federal and state agencies regarding development, implementation, and progress of local emergency plans

- Assists in the development and implementation of plans of action to resolve any identified problems both internally and externally as needed

- Assist in the inventory of manpower and material resources from governmental, volunteer, and private sector sources that would be available during an emergency

- Respond to all natural disasters, transportation and/or fixed facility incidents involving hazardous materials when deemed necessary, within one (1) hour.

- Rotate an on-call status for emergency response and emergency point of contact for nights, weekends, and holidays.

- Performs other special and related duties or assignments as requested by the Director.

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE: Bachelor's degree from a four-year college or university in a closely related field a plus but not required; five (5) years related experience and/or training preferably within a governmental entity; Experience in emergency operations, management; Specific emergency response experience preferred. Years of experience and other relevant certification or training preferred. Individual must be proficient in the use of computers.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Must have the ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, and/or government regulations. Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, the Parish Council and the general public.

REASONING ABILITY: Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form. Ability to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations.

CERTIFICTATES, LICENSES, AND REGISTRATIONS: Possess a valid Louisiana driver's license (Class D) and have an acceptable driving record.

Other Skills and Abilities:

- Must be proficient in the use of a personal computer with experience using the Microsoft Office programs, especially Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel

- Ability to perform assignments with minimal supervision and under tight deadlines as needed

- Have excellent public relations and communication skills

- Have knowledge of federal and state regulations and experience with compliance and quality control measures specific to emergency management

- May assist in training new employees

- Must be willing to work overtime on occasion as needed

- Must be willing to attend occasional meetings and seminars outside of the office both during and after normal business hours; may also be required to travel outside of the state as necessary for training

- Position requires a high degree of confidentiality and trustworthiness due to the privileged and confidential nature of the information processed by the department and the parish

PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. St. James Parish Government is an equal opportunity employer. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand, sit, reach with hands and arms, and talk or hear. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities that may occasionally be required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and the ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of the job.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee regularly works indoors within an office environment. The employee will need to work outdoors and be exposed to weather and other environments during emergency operations activities.

St. James Parish is committed to providing equal employment opportunities. The parish will not discriminate against employees or applicants for employment on any legally recognized basis including, but not limited to veteran status, race, color, religion, sex, marital status, national origin, physical or mental disability, agree or political affiliations.

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