When emergency events strike Georgia or neighboring states, the Georgia Forestry Commission’s Incident Management Type 2 (IMT2) Team stands ready to help. Established in 2002 in the wake of heightened emergency and security awareness following the events of 9/11 and a series of large, southern wildfires, the team consists of 70 GFC professionals from all service areas of the agency. These volunteers are trained under the National Interagency Incident Management System, the structure that defines systems and trains participants to ensure a unified emergency response effort. Team “Type” designations are ranked according to the severity of incidents served. A Type 1 Team serves the most critical multi-incident event, such as large, complex wildfires spreading across several counties, while a Type 4 Team consists of one person with equipment. The GFC’s Type 2 Team is qualified to work large incidents in either support or management roles, including logistics, planning, operations, and finance.
“Consistently working and training together over time helps the team develop and operate as an efficient unit,” said Alan Dozier, Agency Administrator for the Team and Chief of Forest Protection for the GFC. “Our Type 2 Team has gone through intensive training and served in several real-life disasters that have grown them into a highly skilled unit.”
The GFC’s IMT2 Team has been awarded a State Employee “Leadership” Recognition Award by Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue for its outstanding service following Hurricane Katrina last September. The Team served at Barkesdale Air Force Base in Bossier City, Louisiana to organize and manage the commodity staging area, where up to 1,000 supply trucks were processed daily. In addition, the team managed comprehensive warehouse operations.
The GFC’s IMT2 Team got valuable experience in disaster relief when it responded to a series of five Florida hurricanes in 2004. It also provided logistic support and operational management of fire safety for the G-8 Summit on St. Simon’s Island and responded to wildfires that destroyed more than 1,000 acres in Liberty, McIntosh, and Bryan Counties.
When post-Katrina relief operations were closed down in a ceremony at Barkesdale AFB, the Team was highly commended.
“It was extremely gratifying to listen to our people be praised by the Forest Service Area Command, FEMA, the U.S. DOT, and the U.S. Air Force at Barkesdale for a job well done,” said GFC Director Ken Stewart. “The caliber of our team is truly unmatched.”
