Pictured Above: Exercise participants working

in the MCEM Emergency Operations Center.

Photo by Allie Callow-Spencer

IronOR ‘24 was a one-day, cross-jurisdictional, functional exercise with participation from local municipalities and served agencies on October 29th. Multnomah County developed the exercise in partnership with the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management (PBEM) and the City of Gresham. The exercise was part of the Oregon Emergency Management’s (OEM) four-day, statewide functional exercise. State agencies, counties, and tribal nations were invited to test their own essential functions and determine the length of participation within the state’s functional exercise.

Multnomah County tested four objectives:

• Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Coordination
• Processing Resource Requests
• Reporting Situational Awareness
• Practicing Interoperable Communications using a Primary, Alternate, Contingency Emergency (PACE) Plan

In preparation for the exercise, participants attended sessions that contributed to the final content, including a post-Cascadia leadership tabletop, an EOC Model workshop, resource request seminars, and a radio review.

On September 27th, Multnomah County conducted an in-person tabletop discussion with subject matter experts and individuals in leadership regarding the decision-making process following a Cascadia 9.0 earthquake. The tabletop defined delegation of authority as part of Continuity of Government, secondary location of operations as part of the Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP), and the coordination efforts between county and state and internal departmental coordination.

On October 28th, Multnomah County Emergency Management (MCEM) equipped participants with the organizational framework and tools needed under the County’s statutory responsibilities to effectively manage an Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The second workshop provided a comprehensive overview of the resource request process, prioritization of scarce resources, and guiding principles. The day concluded with a radio review to test participants’ equipment compatibility within the MCARES network.

Municipalities within East County expressed that they felt empowered after the exercise when they realized they were far more self-reliant than acknowledged prior to the event.

Watch for the After Action Report on the IronOR ‘24 exercise to learn about lessons learned.



MCEM would like to thank our outgoing Training and Exercise Coordinator, Allie Callow-Spencer, and the exercise planning team for facilitating the exercise.

Pictured Below: Amanda Westervelt of PBEM (left) and Allie Callow-Spencer

of MCEM (right) at PBEM's EOC.

We are currently seeking to fill two vacancies at MCEM. 

Senior Planner

Make an impact by joining us as a Senior Emergency Management Planner in Oregon’s most populous county. You will lead and develop equitable and inclusive plans using a whole-community approach to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate against disaster events.

In this role, you will have many opportunities to showcase your communication skills, project management experience, strong technical writing ability, outstanding teamwork and commitment to public service. You will work in a flexible environment and be a part of a small, professionally-diverse team within a large government organization. Planners at the Multnomah County Office of Emergency Management (MCEM) collaborate with the Operations and Logistics Divisions within the office and support Multnomah County’s many services across a number of departments to build a safe, healthy and vibrant community. MCEM’s mission is to be Disaster Ready: Everyone, Everywhere..

The full-time position will close on November 11, 11:59 p.m. Information can be found on the Multco Jobs site. 

Senior Emergency Management Analyst

In this role, you will apply your project management, community engagement, and public communications experience to lead projects and studies, effectively engage with County personnel and the public on emergency management topics, and serve on various boards, committees, and community advisory groups. You will successfully facilitate and coordinate emergency response and recovery activities, training and exercises, engagement with the public and partners during sensitive and high-intensity situations and extended periods of time in order to reach emergency management outcomes and goals.

The Senior Emergency Management Analyst will have opportunities to showcase excellent project management, interpersonal and communication skills, as well as strong technical writing and outstanding grant management skills. You will work in a flexible environment, be part of a small and professionally-diverse team, and collaborate with all programs within MCEM. MCEM has a commitment to equitably serving communities in a human-services oriented jurisdiction.

The full-time position will close on November 24, 11:59 p.m. Information can be found on the Multco Jobs site. 

For questions on either position, please contact the recruiter Prudence Veach by email at prudence.s.veach@multco.us, or by phone at (971) 469-4245.

With colder weather approaching, Department of County Human Services (DCHS) is preparing to support potential warming shelter activities. With this in mind, DCHS is hosting several trainings and info sessions over the next month to equip volunteers with the knowledge and training to work in warming shelters.

November 5: Info Session: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

A virtual information session for people interested in learning more about Multnomah County's Disaster Resource Centers.

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 9:00am-9:45am
• Location: Virtual (Google Meet Link)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: N/A

November 5: Staff Training: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

A virtual training for people interested in working as General Staff in DRCs during severe weather sheltering events.

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 10:00am-12:00pm
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

December 4: Info Session: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

A virtual information session for people interested in learning more about Multnomah County's Disaster Resource Centers.

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 9:00am-9:45am
• Location: Virtual (Google Meet Link)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: N/A

December 4: Staff Training: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

A virtual training for people interested in working as General Staff in DRCs during severe weather sheltering events.

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 10:00am-12:00pm
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

Learn more about how you can help here.

Portland State University's School of Earth, Environment, and Society invites the public to attend a lecture series on "Innovative Approaches to Addressing Societal Risks from Compound Environmental Threats."

The lectures will be offered on Thursday afternoons from 4:00pm to 4:50pm in Cramer Hall room 53 (1721 SW Broadway, Portland, OR, 97201; enter on the north side of the building and follow signs). Lectures will take place each Thursday from October 10 to December 5 (except for Thursday November 28 when Portland State University is closed for Thanksgiving).

Details on specific speakers, topics and dates can be found on Portland State University's website.

Upcoming Events

You can view upcoming training opportunities through the following events calendars: Multnomah County, the Regional Disaster Preparedness Organization (subscribe option), the State of Oregon (subscribe option), and the State of Washington.

Training Offerings

13 Dates through December 11th: Disaster Behavioral Health Volunteer Training

• Host: MC Behavioral Health
• Time: Varies (see registration form for dates and times)
• Location: Virtual 
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: none 
• Registration: Register Here

November 5: Info Session: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 9:00am-9:45am
• Location: Virtual (Google Meet Link)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: N/A

November 5: Staff Training: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 10:00am-12:00pm
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

November 7: MGT-343 Disaster Management for Water and Wastewater Utilities

• Host: FEMA-TEEX
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm
• Location: South Puget Sound College, 4200 Capitol Blvd. Olympia
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None, but AWR419 recommended
• Registration: Register Here

November 11-13: MGT-310 Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment and Stakeholder Preparedness Review

• Host: FEMA-TEEX
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm 
• Location: The Atrium, 3000 Pacific Ave SE, Olympia, WA 98501
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: IS-700, IS-800, IS-235, IS-2000, IS-2500, AWR-213, AWR-160, MGT-418
• Registration: Register Here

November 12-14: Equity and Environmental Justice in Wildland Fire

• Host: Northwest Fire Science Consortium and Partners
• Time: 9:00am-1:00pm 
• Location: Virtual 
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None 
• Registration: Register Here

November 18-22: 40-Hour Crisis Intervention Team Training Course

• Host: Polk County Behavioral Health and the Polk County Sheriff's Office
• Time: 8am-5pm 
• Location: Independence Civic Center, 555 S. Main St, Independence, OR 97351
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Call Jacob Lacombe at (503) 623-9251

November 19-21 : ICS 300: Intermediate ICS for Expanding Incidents

• Host: PBEM 
• Time: 8am-5pm 
• Location: Gresham City Hall, 1333 NW Eastman Pkwy, Gresham, OR 97030
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: ICS-100, ICS-200, IS-700, and IS-800
• Registration: Register Here

December 3: Procurement Disaster Assistance Team (PDAT) Training

• Host: OEM  
• Time: 9am-12pm
• Location: Virtual or 3930 Fairview Industrial Dr SE, Salem OR 97302
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None 
• Registration: Register Here

December 3-4: MGT-319 Medical Countermeasures: Points of Dispensing (POD), Planning and Response

• Host: TEEX 
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm 
• Location: The Atrium, 3000 Pacific Ave SE, Olympia, WA 98501
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: Recommended IS-100, IS-200, IS-700
• Registration: Register Here

December 4: Info Session: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 9:00am-9:45am
• Location: Virtual (Google Meet Link)
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: N/A

December 4: Staff Training: Severe Weather Shelter/Disaster Resource Center

• Host: Multnomah County Department of County Human Services
• Time: 10:00am-12:00pm
• Location: Virtual
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

December 6: Continuity Planning Lunch & Learn Session

• Host: Washington Emergency Management 
• Time: 12:00pm-12:45pm
• Location: Virtual 
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

December 10: MGT 493 - Crisis Leadership Resolving Climate Impacts through Community Lifelines

• Host: Alliance Solutions Group, Inc.
• Time: 8:30am-4:00pm
• Location: Multnomah Building, 501 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

December 11: MGT-305  Achieving Equitable Outcomes through Effective Public Information and Warning

• Host: Alliance Solutions Group, Inc.
• Time: 8:30am-3:00pm
• Location: Multnomah Building, 501 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: None
• Registration: Register Here

December 11-12: ICS 400 - Advanced ICS for Complex Incidents

• Host: PBEM 
• Time: 8:00am-5:00pm 
• Location: Gresham City Hall, 1333 NW Eastman Pkwy, Gresham, OR 97030
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: ICS-100, ICS-200, IS-700, IS-800, and IS-300
• Registration: Register Here

December 16-20: K2302 Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Leaders Skillset Course

• Host: WA EMD
• Time: 8:00am-12:30pm
• Location: Virtual 
• Cost: Free
• Prerequisites: IS-2200, E/G-2300, IS-13
• Registration: Register Here

January 6-10, 2025: K2304 Emergency Operations Center Planning Skillsets

• Host: WA EMD
• Time: 8:00am-2:00pm
• Location: Virtual 
• Cost: Free 
• Prerequisites: IS-13 - EMI Conduct and Behavior
• Registration: Register Here