About Barb Ayers, C.E.M., professional Emergency Manager

 
 

Public Service / Public Safety / Public Information roles:

  • San Diego County emergency management officer

  • Hood River County Emergency Manager, 7 years

  • San Diego Fire-Rescue Program Manager and Sr. Public Information Officer for City of San Diego

  • CEM - Certified Emergency Manager

  • 13 years as media producer and manager for World-famous San Diego Zoo

  • 10 years of San Diego broadcast media experience

The Mosier Oil Train Derailment of 2016 made national news - Barb served as mutual aid support to Wasco County while evacuating (as a Mosier resident.)

Barbara Ayers Day proclamation, October 2007 by San Diego City Council, recognizing San Diego Fire-Rescue Department’s CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) Program achievements under Barb.

Work sample:

Get Ready Gorge guide - Get Ready Gorge campaign and GetReadyGorge.com - Hood River County Emergency Management, winter 2016. Barbara Ayers, Project Manager

State of the City report, City of Vancouver, WA- Our River. Our City. Our Future, 2013. Barbara Ayers, Project Manager

PRSA Merit Award, public relations event/campaign - Barbara Ayers, City of Vancouver, Your Key to the City, dedication of Vancouver City Hall, 2012

Eagle Creek Wildfire Lessons Learned - 2018 OEMA Conference (Oregon Emergency Managers Assn.) panel presentation - Barbara Ayers, Hood River County Emergency Manager, Hood River Sheriff Matt English and Oregon State Fire Marshall Marianna Temple-Ruiz

Top 10 Tools You Can Use for Disaster Preparedness Outreach - Oregon Prepared Conference presentation 2016, Barbara Ayers, Hood River County Emergency Manager

Big and small City and County emergency experience:

Currently: Barb Ayers, C.E.M., Senior San Diego County OES (Office of Emergency Services) staff

Previously: 7 years as County Emergency Manager / Public Information Officer building emergency preparedness programs across the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area in Hood River, Oregon.

Barb managed Hood River County’s EOC (Emergency Operations Center) during emergency declarations:

  • COVID pandemic

  • Eagle Creek Wildfire

  • 2017 Winter Snow/Ice storm

  • 2015 and 2021 Drought

Barb was County EOC Manager for the month-long Eagle Creek Wildfire, the top US fire priority in Sept. 2017.

She also served as Emergency Manager for the initial phase of Mosier Creek Fire and also supported Wasco County in the Mosier, OR Union Pacific Oi Train derailment.

In California, before moving to Oregon, Barb launched the CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) program, working for San Diego Fire-Rescue Dept., recruiting, training and deploying 800 volunteers on 19 teams across the San Diego, America’s eighth largest city.

Previously:

Communications Manager for Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital and the City of Vancouver, WA

Work samples and links:

Hood River County Multi-jurisdictional Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan, 2018, Barbara Ayers, Project Manager

Health Currents magazine - quarterly mailer produced in house for Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital, 2008, promotes hospital grand opening. Barbara Ayers, Project Manager

After Action Report, lessons learned - Integrated Emergency Management Community Specific academy (IEMC) 2017, Barb was Project Manager for the national grant funded training program.

Hood River County Emergency Management websites: Hood River Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Management and Get Ready Gorge.com.

Why We Love Vancouver - summer fun guide, City of Vancouver, WA, 2013.

Certifications

  • CEM - Certified Emergency Manager (International Assn. of Emergency Managers) 2021

  • NEMAA - National Emergency Managers Advanced Academy 2019

  • More than 750 hours of advanced FEMA and ICS (Incident Command System) training hours: Advanced Public Information Officer, Advanced Professional Series (APS,) Basic Applied Practices Series (BAPS,) Professional Development Series (PDS,) All Hazards Incident Commander, All Hazards Logistics Chief

  • B.A. San Diego State University

Barb’s not all business - she and her surf dogs (Doodle, pictured here) have been in countless parades since the 1990’s.

Awards:

  • Six television EMMY awards for writing, ad campaign, feature story, art direction, Kid’s show and animation

  • 16 national TELLY awards for broadcast media productions

  • Portland, OR PRSA (Public Relations Society of America) Merit Award for event/campaign: Your Key to the City - City of Vancouver, WA

  • Barbara Ayers Day proclamation, San Diego City Council, 2007

  • Oregon State Schools Partnership Award - Providence health marketing

  • Ocean Beach Town Council Citizen of the Year

  • Two Rotary Paul Harris Fellows

Board member - Community Service

  • United Way Columbia Gorge Council

  • Mosier Fire District Board (elected official)

  • Hood River Rotary Board

  • WA State School for the Blind volunteer

  • CGW2- Columbia Gorge Wind & Water Assn. Board

  • Hood River County Chamber of Commerce Board (elected official)

  • Ocean Beach Town Council (OBTC) President, City Councilor (Elected Official)

  • OBTC Chairperson, Dog Beach Committee installing the Dog Beach Improvement Project

  • San Diego County United Way/CHAD Board