Eric Holdeman

While is has only been less than a week, the Uniteds states is having a respite from godawful weather that dominated the continent just a few days ago.

It is something that I cannot over emphasize enough. Leadership is the key ingredient in any organization. Find a good leader and you will undoubtedly find a good organization, and visa versa. It becomes even more evident in a crisis situation.

One of the sayings that I have in several places in my home is the phrase, "It is what it is." Which harkens to one's inability to influence the current state of affairs or the future by our own personal actions. Accept it and move on — might be a paraphrase of the "it is what it is" quote.

I'm always interested in new innovative ideas. So this one caught my attention: " Emergency management class ends in jobs for City College students ‘who want to help other people.’ "

We have been committing huge numbers of resources to fighting wildfires and then also recovering from them. See this Disaster Zone podcast: “Transforming Wildfire Management with AI.”

Property and hazard insurance is heating up as a topic with elected officials at every level of government. This is a good article: “ Is National Flood Insurance Program Off the Chopping Block? ”

Around the globe, wildfire season never ends. With the Northern Hemisphere in winter, that means the Southern Hemisphere is experiencing summer.

It is clear that we have a transitioning emergency management workforce with at least three generations of emergency managers now working together. That, plus how we mix the mid-career professionals entering emergency management from other professions with newly minted college graduates. These new graduates come with more technology expertise and an overall grounding in the profession—but, usually no practical experience.

There is a song with lyrics that include the words, “It never rains in Southern California.” Hmm, that position is being challenged right now with a second of two atmospheric rivers hitting the region causing all sorts of flooding and likely mudslides to follow.

Watching organizations and individuals play "damage control" is almost a national sport. Someone is always having to deal with unfavorable news coming to light. In recent months the Boeing Company has had its share of unfavorable news. At other times it can be a railroad, and a prominent train derailment that draws national attention. Then, there are individuals in sports, the media or emergency managers who get a negative spotlight shone on their actions.