John R. Gibb has 35 years of state and local comprehensive emergency management and homeland security experience with expertise and leadership in areas of prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery across a broad array of technological, natural and terrorism related hazards. As an emergency management and homeland security agency head in New York State, he served four governors. He led and managed the integration of state level cyber security, counter terrorism, emergency management, fire service and interoperable communications functions when New York State created the new Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services in 2010. He was Executive Director of the NYS Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Task Force from 2001 until 2005 and directed a team that conducted statewide terrorism threat, vulnerability and capability assessments in the aftermath of 9-11. He developed the first homeland security grant formula for the state and administered the initial $800 million of homeland security grants to the state.
Mr. Gibb’s emergency planning experience includes leading the development of SEMO’s Ten–Step Emergency Planning Process, which has guided state agency, county and local emergency planning development efforts across the state for nearly twenty years. Gibb has significant “hands-on” planning experience including authoring the Governor’s Office COOP Plan, the State’s first National Pharmaceutical Stockpile Annex, the state Offsite Air Disaster Annex and state Y2K Response Plan and local planning guidance. Gibb has 15 years of radiological emergency preparedness (REP) experience in the areas of planning, training and exercising, and led the state team that resolved Indian Point emergency planning issues culminating in federal Part 350 approval. As Director of the State Emergency Management Office, Gibb championed the design and implementation of NY-Alert, a statewide, interoperable, public alert and warning system.
Mr. Gibb has served in significant response and recovery roles for a number of disasters and emergencies in New York State. As the Director of NYSEMO (2005 – 2010) he was the State Coordinating Officer and Governor’s Authorized Representative for ten President-declared Major Disasters. He was also designated by Governor Paterson as the State Coordinating Office for the H1N1 outbreak in 2009 and in that capacity was responsible for coordination of State agency COOP preparedness and conducted a statewide series of public workshops with the State Health Commissioner. He was a Deputy State Coordinating Office for the 9-11 attacks where he coordinated state agency response activities in New York City and served as the state lead at the FEMA Disaster Field Office. He served in key operational roles – on-scene – for the 1998 North Country ice storm, the crash of TWA Flight 800 in July, 1996, and numerous floods, blizzards, hurricanes, ice storms as well as the World Trade Center bombing in 1993.
Gibb’s consulting experience has included regional catastrophic planning work, government and business emergency plan development, exercise development and facilitation, and offsite REP planning and exercise support.
Gibb is an active, volunteer Emergency Medical Technician with the Salem (NY) Rescue Squad and has more than 35 years of experience as a local fire and EMS responder. Gibb has a BA in Geography from SUNY Albany.