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"One of government's most
fundamental and important responsibilities is to keep its citizens
safe. Andrew Velasquez has an impressive track record of overseeing
emergency response and security for the City of Chicago -- one of
the largest urban areas in our country. He knows how important it
[is] to have communication and coordination at every level when
dealing with a threat to public safety. I am proud to have him on
board as head of the agency responsible for public safety and
emergency management efforts in Illinois," said Gov. Blagojevich.
Velasquez's new job responsibilities also include oversight of the
Illinois Terrorism Task Force, which is charged with the specific
task of assuring that Illinois is ready to respond to an act of
terrorism. To that end, he will work with Michael Chamness, Chairman
of the task force, to help improve the plans in place to deal with a
terrorist attack in Illinois, including communication and response
procedures between state agencies and local communities.
"I am extremely grateful to Gov. Blagojevich for the opportunity
to serve the residents of this state in such an important role,"
Velasquez said. "The areas of emergency management, disaster
response and homeland security are critical ones, demanding
experience, commitment and passion, and I look forward to bringing
those characteristics to the post as I work to fulfill the
Governor's vision for a safe and secure Illinois."
Velasquez has been serving as executive director of Chicago's
Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) since May
2005. In that role, he has implemented innovative technology
solutions such as using wireless and satellite communications to
enhance the city's delivery of emergency services. He also
implemented a first-of-its-kind emergency management satellite
communications vehicle, which is designed to respond to the scene of
incidents and receive all aspects of data, camera surveillance and
other intelligent applications from OEMC's Operations Center. In
addition to dispatching all of the city's emergency services, the
OEMC also operates the city's Traffic Management Authority and
maintains the communications networks for other city departments.
Prior to serving at OEMC, Velasquez worked for the Chicago Police
Department in a number of capacities. Beginning in 1995 as a
research analyst with the Research and Development Division,
Velasquez worked his way up to director of the Criminal
Identification and Records Services Division. In that job, he was
responsible for overseeing criminal identification of those
arrested, criminal warrants and offender extradition, and criminal
and civil subpoena processing.
Velasquez also has a background in the military. He served with
the U.S. Army for six years, during which time he received several
medals and commendations.
At IEMA, Velasquez will replace William Burke, who has been
serving as director since May 2003. Director Burke is retiring from
state government to pursue private business opportunities.
"It has been an immense pleasure for me to be a member of
Gov. Blagojevich's administration," said Director Burke. "I've had
the tremendous opportunity to work with outstanding individuals and
organizations on the awesome task of building emergency management
and homeland security programs to protect the citizens of Illinois."
[to top of second column]
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 During Gov. Blagojevich's first term in office, Illinois has
reached several important milestones in emergency and disaster
management:
IEMA is one of only eight states to receive
full accreditation from the Emergency Management Accreditation
Program (EMAP). The EMAP Commission approved Illinois'
certification, February 2006, following an in-depth assessment of
the state's emergency response capabilities to coordinate personnel,
resources and communications from a variety of agencies and
disciplines in preparation for and in response to a major disaster.
First state to complete new State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC)
under U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant program: In 2004, Illinois received $9.3 million from DHS under a competitive
grant program for states to develop new SEOCs. The grant, the
second-largest awarded in the nation, enabled the state to enhance
the state's response capabilities and foster closer cooperation
between the State of Illinois Response Center, the Statewide
Terrorism Intelligence Center, the Radiological Emergency Assessment
Center and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency's operations
staff by bringing them under one roof.
First state to conduct a full-scale Pandemic Flu-Exercise:
Illinois was the first state to conduct a large-scale
pandemic flu exercise in May 2006. This three-day exercise tested
preparedness for a simultaneous pandemic flu outbreak and terrorist
attack, and involved more than 2,000 local, state and federal
responders in a test of preparedness. In August, 2006, the state
conducted a five-day exercise that involved more than 1,000 local,
state and federal responders in a test of preparedness to a
terrorist scenario, including a mass evacuation and sheltering
situation.
Orphan Source Program --
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) Recognition as "Good Practice":
The NRC identified IEMA's Environmental Safety Orphan
Source Program as an item of "Good Practice" in its performance
evaluation report on IEMA activities. Environmental Safety conducted
two rounds of orphan radioactive source collections.
Nuclear Satellite Data Uplink for Effective Communications:
Nuclear Facility Safety designed, fabricated, and tested in
real-time a mobile radiation detection system with Global
Positioning System, satellite data uplink communications, and
real-time GIS data displays for six emergency response field team
vehicles. These units automatically transmit their radiation data
via satellite to Springfield computer centers where data is analyzed
by experts and public safety actions can be taken.
Braidwood Ingestion Pathway Exercise -- Recognized as Most
Significant Exercise Conducted: The Braidwood 2006
Ingestion Pathway Exercise was one of the most significant and
critical nuclear emergency preparedness plan exercises ever
conducted at Exelon Nuclear. IEMA was judged to be compliant in all
tested criteria.
Online Efficiency in Radiation Technologists Renewal:
Medical radiation technologists can now renew an active
accreditation, apply to change a temporary accreditation to an
active status, or submit an address update directly from the IEMA
website. With over 13,000 individuals currently accredited by the
Agency, who must renew every two years, the online renewal
capability has the potential to significantly increase the ease and
convenience of the renewal process for both the individual
technologists and the agency.
[Text copied from file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information] |
