Macon-Bibb County Selected for FEMA’s Integrated Emergency Management Course

Macon-Bibb County has been chosen to participate in the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)’s Integrated Emergency Management Course (IEMC) for 2025. Each year, FEMA selects one community from each region of the United States for this course, and Macon-Bibb County is the sole representative from the Southeast for this year.

According to Spencer Hawkins, Director of the Macon-Bibb Emergency Management Agency (EMA), “Emergency Management is a team effort. This course will allow our team to build invaluable relationships and receive some of the best training the country has to offer.”

This marks the second time in a decade that Macon-Bibb County has been selected for the IEMC. In March 2025, 60 local responders and partners will travel to Emmitsburg, MD, for the course. They will engage in nine months of training and preparation. On Thursday, numerous community leaders met at City Hall to review the training process and expectations with FEMA representatives. Emergency management officials from the Muscogee (Creek) Nation (MCN) also attended the meeting, as they will join Macon-Bibb in the training.

Bobby Howard, Emergency Manager Director, highlighted the significance of the collaboration: “This training event shows how Macon-Bibb and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation work together to protect the lives and property within their jurisdiction. This is also the first time a Tribal Nation and a County have conducted this level of training in the history of FEMA.”

Tracie Revis, Director of Advocacy for the Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative, emphasized the historical and cultural context: “The land that Macon-Bibb County was founded on is the ancestral homelands of the Muscogee (Creek) peoples. Below the ground there are cultural artifacts that are deeply significant; however, when a natural disaster occurs it does not care who is on the land. This collaboration with the Muscogee (Creek) Nation allows an opportunity to train and create plans to protect our homes, people, and places.”

The IEMC is a four-day, exercise-based training program designed for Emergency Operations Center personnel to practice responding to realistic crisis situations. The course includes simulations based on the specific hazards and organizational structure of the participating jurisdiction.

Hawkins noted the value of past training: “The training we received 10 years ago had a direct impact on how we successfully responded to the disasters that have impacted Macon-Bibb, specifically Hurricanes Irma and COVID-19. Disasters are getting more intense and more frequent, and we need to be prepared.”