Senior Emergency Management and Evacuation Planner

Dudek•, CA

2d•$100,000 - $140,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Dudek is seeking a mid- to senior-level professional to join their fire protection and evacuation planning team on a full-time basis. The team has been working in wildfire assessment and fire protection planning for nearly 25 years, collaborating with landowners, development companies, and land management agencies to evaluate wildfire hazards and evacuation approaches. They develop plans that provide a framework for analyzing evacuation impacts according to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) standards. The ideal candidate will possess a blend of emergency management experience (working for or supporting a public agency like a local emergency management office, law enforcement, fire department, CAL FIRE, US Forest Service, or BLM) and environmental planning/CEQA experience. This role involves managing public-sector wildfire evacuation planning and analysis projects, including General Plan and Safety Element evacuation studies, developing evacuation scenarios, evaluating evacuation route capacity and constraints, and delivering technical memoranda and recommendations. The position is ideally located near a California office but may accommodate other locations. Travel to project sites and client/fire agency offices throughout California is required. Familiarity with emergency planning procedures, the Incident Command System, and state/local building, development, and defensible space codes is highly desirable.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in emergency management, fire science, public safety, environmental planning, urban or regional planning, environmental science, geography, or a related field; or equivalent relevant professional experience.
Minimum of 5 years of professional experience working for, or directly supporting, a public agency in emergency management, law enforcement, fire service, wildfire response, evacuation planning, or incident preparedness.
Experience with evaluating wildfire risk under CEQA.
Professional environmental planning experience, including preparation or review of CEQA documents, General Plans, Safety Elements, environmental impact analyses, mitigation measures, or related planning documents.
Demonstrable experience preparing large technical documents.
Experience preparing or reviewing CEQA analyses and supporting technical studies, preferably involving wildfire risk, evacuation, hazards, transportation, public safety, or General Plan and Safety Element planning.
Demonstrated ability to integrate emergency management operations, public-agency coordination, and operational constraints into defensible environmental planning analyses, mitigation measures, implementation recommendations, and technical reports.
Demonstrated ability to conduct research; evaluate datasets, planning documents, and site development plans; and summarize pertinent information in clear, technically sound reports.
Demonstrable experience preparing substantial technical documents and communicating evacuation and environmental planning concepts to project teams, agencies, and public decision-making bodies.
Ability to understand and apply emergency planning procedures and standards and to work effectively across emergency management, fire, law enforcement, transportation, public works, and environmental planning disciplines.
Excellent technical, project management, and professional communication skills.

Nice To Haves

Direct employment, assignment, or embedded consulting experience with a local, state, or federal emergency management, law enforcement, fire, or land management agency.
Familiarity with the Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS), National Incident Management System (NIMS), Incident Command System (ICS), emergency operations plans, hazard mitigation plans, evacuation annexes, and operational-area coordination.
Completion of FEMA NIMS and ICS courses IS-100, IS-200, IS-700, and IS-800.
Experience facilitating multidisciplinary coordination among planning, fire, law enforcement, public works, transportation, and emergency management personnel.
Experience managing public-sector wildfire evacuation planning or analysis projects and presenting technical findings to public agencies, elected or appointed bodies, community groups, or incident management personnel.
Familiarity with evacuation modeling and analysis software packages and toolkits.

Responsibilities

Analyze project maps, plans, and datasets and summarize evacuation conditions for inclusion in reports and management plans.
Conduct field assessments to evaluate evacuation hazard conditions.
Analyze field data, GIS data, and conduct project-related research.
Prepare or support preparation of evacuation plans and technical reports, including development of recommendations.
Manage public wildfire evacuation planning and analysis projects (scope, schedule, budget, and deliverables), including Safety Element and other community evacuation studies.
Develop and document evacuation scenarios, assumptions, and methodologies; evaluate evacuation route capacity constraints and travel time considerations; and identify areas of potential congestion and operational needs.
Direct wildfire evacuation modeling by traffic and transportation planners.
Coordinate with clients and partner agencies (e.g., local jurisdictions, fire agencies, law enforcement, and transportation/public works) to obtain data, validate assumptions, and align recommendations.
Lead quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) for technical memoranda, graphics, and supporting documentation.
Attend meetings to discuss the results of project-related assessments and analyses; present findings to project teams, stakeholders, and public decision-making bodies as needed.