Greetings emergency managers and partners, 

It was great to see everyone at the OEMA Conference earlier this month! I had a chance to talk to so many emergency managers, health partners, voluntary agency partners, federal agency staff, private sector consultants, and others. I appreciated the friendly welcome and your open and honest feedback about how we can better support you.

I've also had an opportunity to attend meetings in every region so far except the southwest region (you're next, southwest!). 

In case you missed it, we've been making some changes here at OEM including moving Hazard Mitigation out of the Recovery and Mitigation Division and into the newly created Resilience Division. The Resilience Division will allow us to put more emphasis on increasing mitigation projects and funding for state and local applicants to increase disaster resilience across the state. It also allows the Recovery Team to fully focus on individual assistance and public assistance - both of which are also critically important programs that keep us busy year around. 

So far this year, the State Emergency Operations Center has already been activated for 38 days for winter weather, severe storms, and wildfires. On February 27, FEMA approved OEM's request for a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) for the Catesby Fire after numerous evacuations were ordered by local officials. 

Finally, we've been testing different ways to communicate updates about State EOC activation activities with all of our various stakeholders. A number of you tuned into our recent statewide coordination call during the March 24 activation and we plan to do more of that in the future. We're committed to increasing and improving communications, so we'll keep working to come up with the right formula to ensure everyone is adequately informed. 

In the coming months, severe weather season is top of mind for all of us along with the upcoming solar eclipse impacting southeast Oklahoma. Our staff are prepared for a busy season and I'm excited that we'll soon have a deputy director in place to provide additional support.

As I've said before, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me anytime if you have questions or would like to connect. I hope to see many of you at Emergency Management Day at the Capitol on April 23. 

Take care of yourselves this spring and thank you for all you do!

Annie Mack Vest
State Director

FEMA Offers $360M in Grants to Boost Number of Trained Firefighters in Communities Nationwide

FEMA announced the opening of the application period for the Fiscal Year 2023 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program, which offers $360 million in grants directly to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to help them increase or maintain the number of trained firefighters protecting communities across the nation. 

Building more resilient communities includes having sufficiently staffed fire departments. FEMA SAFER grant funding will be used to increase the number of firefighters to help communities meet industry minimum standards, attain 24-hour staffing to provide adequate fire protection from fire and fire-related hazards and to fulfill traditional missions of fire departments. The SAFER application period will close on Friday, April 12, 2024, at 5 p.m. ET.

Read more

FEMA Opens Application Period for $36M in Grants to Strengthen Community Resilience Through Fire Prevention Programs

FEMA announced the release of the funding notice and opening of the latest application period for the FY 2023 Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) grant program, which will award $36 million to strengthen community fire prevention programs and support scientific research on innovations that improve firefighter safety, health and well-being.

To help keep communities and firefighters safer, FP&S funding is being made available directly to eligible fire departments, national, regional, state, local, tribal and non-profit organizations such as public safety institutes, public health, occupational health and injury prevention institutions for fire prevention programs and firefighter health and safety research and development such as clinical studies that address behavioral, social science and cultural research. The application period closes April 12 at 5 p.m. ET.

Read more

Open Disasters: PA Federal Share Totals Paid to Date: 

February Wildfire Assistance

FEMA approved OEM's request for a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) for the Catesby Fire in Ellis County on February 27. FMAGs can provide reimbursement to fire departments and other government agencies for costs associated with responding to the fire. An FMAG must be requested when the fire is burning out of control in order to support fire suppression efforts that will reduce the amount of damage that would otherwise result in a FEMA Major Disaster Declaration. 

Additionally, any Oklahoma agencies that responded to the Smokehouse Creek Fire across the state line in Texas may qualify for reimbursement through the FMAG approved for the state of Texas if they have a written mutual aid agreement in place. 

Contact Erin Brazel for more information about FMAGs.

USDA Farm Service Agency Disaster Assistance Programs may be available for those who suffered agricultural losses in the fire. Read more.

Hazard Mitigation Grants

More than $65.9 million has been paid to applicants through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) from disasters that occurred since 2015.

Additionally, OEM submitted applications on February 28 for $26.8 million in FEMA funding to help mitigate against future disasters through the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant and the Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) grant. If approved, the grants would provide a 75 percent federal cost share for mitigation projects for cities, counties and the state. Projects submitted during this application cycle included stormwater drainage plans, flood warning system, detention pond, and replacement of bridges and drainage structures.

Program Highlight: Non-Disaster Grants

The Non-Disaster Grants Team works to ensure your everyday operations continue.  

This duo, led by supervisor Mark Wegrzynski (Grants Financial Analyst IV) and Abby Anderson (Grants Financial Analyst), is hedged under the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management’s Finance Division, submits grant applications, tallies FEMA reporting and doles out financial disbursements to sub-recipients. 

The Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) is their primary focus, which funds emergency management personnel and training at the state and and provides pass through operations and special projects grants to county, municipal, and tribal jurisdictions. In FY 2023, the OEM Non-Disaster Grants team processed pass through grants for 92 eligible jurisdictions. 

Beyond grants, Mark and Abby keep up with compliance related to the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act and the Single Audit Act, and other projects including FEMAGo, SAM.gov, and the Biannual Strategy Implementation Report. 

“I enjoy how each day is different and being able to learn more about how emergency managers out in the field help keep Oklahoma safe before, during and after a disaster,” Abby said. 

The duo awaits the FEMA EMPG Notice of Funding Opportunity for the 2024 fiscal year. Once it is available, they will work to disseminate timelines. 

Ellen White is a Hazard Mitigation Grants Program Specialist in the Resilience Division. She's been with the agency for eight months and her supervisors say she has been a wonderful addition to the team. Get to know more about Ellen below.

Tell us a bit about what you actually do? I review and process all reimbursements for any Hazard Mitigation Program, BRIC and FMA grants.

What brought you to OEM? I have always enjoyed the public service realm, and my education and experience in public health prevention methods aligned well with the hazard mitigation (now resilience) section of OEM.

What do you enjoy most about your job? The hazard mitigation team we have at OEM is the absolute best to work with - that is what I enjoy most!

What would you like to be doing 5 years from now? Professionally, I hope to continue serving Oklahoma communities in any capacity. Personally, I hope to continue to travel and explore our country as much as possible, and maybe add another dog or two to my family. 🙂

How have you used emergency management skills outside of work?Being new to Oklahoma, I have learned SO much about preparations and management for our unique weather that have been extremely helpful outside of work.

What’s an interesting fact your colleagues and emergency managers don’t know about you? I am a huge college basketball fan. March Madness is by far my favorite time of year!

*Responses may be edited for clarity and length

• FEMA Virtual Workshop - When Minutes Matter: Alerts and Warnings for Wildfires - April 2, 9, & 10
• Solar Eclipse - April 8
• OFMA Spring Technical Workshop - April 9, Tulsa
• Emergency Management Day at the Capitol - April 23, Oklahoma City
• Oklahoma Hazmat Conference May 15-18, Edmond
• OFMA Annual Conference - September 16-18, Durant
• IAEM-USA Region 6 Conference - September 19-20, Killeen, TX

• Find 2024 Solar Eclipse information from state agency partners online at www.oklahoma.gov/oem/eclipse. 
• Oklahoma Water Resources Board Activities and Infrastructure Interactive Dashboard.
• Check out our updated #ReadyOK preparedness materials. 
• Have a story idea or or upcoming event for the OEM Newsletter? Submit your idea through our online form.  
• We’re hiring! Find our latest job openings here.