Welcome to the CalChiefs Emergency Management (EM) Section website. My name is Brian Helmick, I am a Deputy Chief for Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, serve as a member of the CalChiefs Executive Board, and have recently filled the Section President vacancy following the retirement of Chief Frank Frievalt.
Unprecedented wildfires and a global pandemic have underscored the absolute necessity of comprehensive Emergency Management in our communities and revealed an immense shared space with California’s Fire Service none of us could have fully appreciated before. We have an equally unprecedented opportunity to improve outcomes in future disasters by aligning our efforts and bringing diverse capabilities to bear in mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.
In response to present threats, and those we can expect, we’ll be retooling the EM section with your input and help, including this website. The EM Section’s top priority is to assist with providing networking and educational opportunities to those who are responsible for coordinating and integrating all activities necessary to build, sustain, and improve the capability to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from threatened or actual natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters.
The EM Section needs your support, participation, and expertise to truly improve outcomes on a large scale.
If you any questions, please feel free to contact me directly at bhelm@cccfpd.org or 925-584-8468.
Sincerely,
Brian Helmick
Daily Dispatch: National News
- Big Fires in 1889 devastated three cities in Washington state June 7, 2023PHOTOS: When Washington became a state in November 1889, that wasn’t the only big news story that year. In the final spring and summer of Washington’s territorial era, big fires ravaged major sections of downtowns on both sides of the Cascades, from Seattle, to Ellensburg, to Spokane. Seattle’s fire struck on the breezy, blue-sky afternoon […]
- Tulsa firefighters union supports medical marijuana for firefighters June 7, 2023VIDEO: Tulsa firefighters should have the ability to use medicinal marijuana to relieve pain and other job-related stress, says Tulsa Firefighters Local 176 Union President Matt Lay. "Originally, it was brought to us by a lot of service members that talked about being able to move away from schedule 2 narcotics and a litany of […]
