La Governor has hired James Lee Witt. The governor has just announced she has hired former FEMA director Witt to assist her.
more:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/29/AR2005082901445.html
... it was Hurricane Andrew, which hit Florida in 1992, that really energized FEMA. The year after that catastrophic storm, President Bill Clinton appointed James Lee Witt to be director of the agency. Witt was the first professional emergency manager to run the agency. Showing a serious regard for the cost of natural disasters in both economic impact and lives lost or disrupted, Witt reoriented FEMA from civil defense preparations to a focus on natural disaster preparedness and disaster mitigation. In an effort to reduce the repeated loss of property and lives every time a disaster struck, he started a disaster mitigation effort called "Project Impact." FEMA was elevated to a Cabinet-level agency, in recognition of its important responsibilities coordinating efforts across departmental and governmental lines.
Witt fought for federal funding to support the new program. At its height, only $20 million was allocated to the national effort, but it worked wonders. One of the best examples of the impact the program had here in the central Puget Sound area and in western Washington state was in protecting people at the time of the Nisqually earthquake on Feb. 28, 2001. Homes had been retrofitted for earthquakes and schools were protected from high-impact structural hazards. Those involved with Project Impact thought it ironic that the day of that quake was also the day that the then-new president chose to announce that Project Impact would be discontinued.
James Witt and his team:
http://www.wittassociates.com/1162.xml
Founded in 2001, James Lee Witt Associates (JLWA) is a crisis and emergency management consulting firm based in Washington, DC with offices in Atlanta, Chicago, and Sacramento. JLWA has unrivaled experience and hands-on knowledge of public safety, disaster mitigation, continuity of operations, and emergency management issues. JLWA bridges government agencies and non-profits with industry and constituents, advises educational institutions, and assists state and local governments, as well as international bodies to prepare for and recover from disasters and crises.
JLWA is uniquely positioned to bring together policy architects and technical experts in public safety, with leaders from all levels of government and private sector partners to forge solutions to emergency management challenges.
The JLWA staff includes seasoned crisis and emergency management leaders with significant experience in the public sector to provide consultation on key issues of public safety. The team is proficient in the details of emergency management, committed to the responsibility of the profession, and understands how crisis and emergency management work fits into a larger political and social climate.
JLWA is comprised of two main practice areas: Crisis and Consequence Management and Strategic Advisory Services.