502nd LRS selected as top emergency management unit at JBSA

The JBSA Office of Emergency Management selected their first-ever unit emergency management program winners for the award, which is given to those units that exemplify a commitment to excellence in support of the JBSA Emergency Management Program, said Gregory Wilson, 502nd Civil Engineer Squadron/JBSA Emergency Management plans and programs manager.

The award was based on the performance of the emergency management unit programs in 2015.

All of the JBSA emergency management unit programs, including Tier I and Tier II classifications, were eligible for the award. The 502nd LRS was selected as having the best emergency management program among nine Tier I units considered.

Wilson said Tier I units are part of the JBSA Emergency Operations Center and support the Disaster Response Force in response and recovery operations from hazards and threats that may occur at JBSA locations. Each unit has a unit control center or unit information center that manages unit personnel and resources during and after emergency responses.

Tier II units provide indirect Disaster Response Force support by communicating with the JBSA Crisis Action Team on personnel accountability and unit mission operations affected by hazards and threats to locations. The 688th Cyberspace Wing earned the Tier II award.

Several criteria were used in selecting the 502nd LRS as the top Tier 1 emergency management unit within JBSA, Wilson said. Those criteria include participation and support in exercises and wing readiness days, unit training and education, timely and accurate emergency management unit reports, ensuring unit response procedures are developed and in place, and overall support to both unit and installation programs.

“With the assistance of the JBSA Office of Emergency Management, unit emergency management representatives ensure they have a viable program so their unit is prepared to respond and recover from disasters, hazards and threats,” Wilson said. “The 502nd LRS and 688th CW epitomized these principles and support to the JBSA Emergency Management Program.”

The 502nd LRS emergency readiness section includes Susan Shelton, 502nd LRS chief of the readiness section at JBSA-Fort Sam Houston; Billy Thomas, 502nd LRS emergency management unit representative at JBSA-Randolph; Concepcion Banda, 502nd LRS security manager at JBSA-Lackland; and Leslie Ford, 502nd LRS unit deployment manager at JBSA-Lackland.

Shelton said she was honored the 502nd LRS emergency readiness section was selected as the top Tier I emergency management unit within JBSA.

“I am proud of the members I work with and the hard effort they put into emergency management for the squadron,” Shelton said.

Shelton said the 502nd LRS emergency readiness section is responsible for the safety and security of the squadron’s 800 members, including active-duty and Department of Defense civilian personnel. The unit oversees security clearances for squadron personnel and contractors and conducts training exercises including those for fire, active shooter, bomb threat, natural disaster or aircraft crash scenarios.

“We make sure we train our squadron members to know what to do in an emergency,” Shelton said. “We make sure they go through the steps whether it’s a bomb, active shooter, fire, natural disaster or aircraft accident drill.”

Thomas said the 502nd LRS emergency readiness section is the unit that squadron members turn to for help during an emergency situation.

“We are the eyes and ears for all 502nd LRS personnel,” Thomas said. “When something happens, the 502nd LRS unit control center gets the word out to all squadron personnel on what’s going on. They get the right and current information on what’s happening.”

The JBSA Phoenix Vanguard Award was established in 2015 after being created at JBSA-Randolph in 2007. For the first time this year, all JBSA units with emergency management programs were considered for the award.