Cook County Homeland Security Director Discusses the ‘Bedrock’ of Planning
Michael Masters, Cook County's executive director for the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness City Club of Chicago / YouTube
This week, Michael Masters addressed the City Club of Chicago about emergency response and preparedness.
Michael Masters, executive director of the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management in Cook County, Illinois, says that collaboration is the “bedrock” of planning, something that's necessary to adequately prepare, react and recover from natural and manmade disasters and disruptions.
Appointed to his position by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle in May 2011, Masters previously served in various positions in Chicago's city government, including chief of staff for the Chicago Police Department, public safety assistant to then-Mayor Richard M. Daley and liaison to the police and fire departments and the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications.
Masters spoke to a gathering of the City Club of Chicago on Monday about looming geopolitical security threats and the collaborative efforts Cook County has made to improve emergency response coordination across the county’s 134 municipalities and 30 townships.
The City Club of Chicago posted video of Masters’ remarks, embedded below.
Here are some excerpts ...
In the last 40 months, we have made incredible progress . . . creating a best-practice agency that is working to protect against, prevent, mitigate the effects of, respond to and recover from all hazards, whether manmade or natural.
And as the second-largest county in the entire nation, the threats and challenges we face are unique but they don’t exist singularly on their own. Think about the tools, the technology, the skillsets and the training required to address some of our most pressing issues.
The information processes and procedures required to inform people of a weather-related event are the same ones that were used during the Boston Marathon bombings to inform residents to stay indoors. The operational response of the fire service responding to a collapsed building whether it’s due to an explosion or a tornado are the same.
As you look across the threat spectrum, you see this time and again. As we have worked to reform, reorganize and re-energize our department, we have implemented an whole community, all-hazards approach. We are stronger when we work together.
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