News : Hansen retires following 25 Year Career

Scott thanking his wife, Julie for all she has done to support him through his career

Scott Hansen was recognized by Steve Meyer for his 25 years of service

Iowa Emergency Manage

After 25 years as the Benton County Emergency Management Coordinator, Scott Hansen, will finally not have to worry about the weather. Or flooding. Or whether or not he should sound the tornado sirens. But out of habit he will no doubt be still thinking about all these things. 

Beginning July 1, 1999, the year before the dreaded and uncertain Y2K. In a time when computers were still relatively new and no one had a clue what to expect, Hansen began his career. He had been asked to give presentations concerning Y2K and how to prepare. His wife Julie said there was only one time that she could remember when his calm, cool and collected demeanor fell away. She said it was shortly after he began at BCEM.

At about 2:00 a.m. one night, he startled awake following a nightmare where everything went wrong. She said he sat straight up in bed feeling the weight of his responsibility. Of course, now we know there was nothing to worry about, but at the time, no one was sure about anything. She joked that this was the one event that broke him, Y2K.

Hansen's original plan was to become a meteorologist. He began college to work toward that goal but decided he didn't want to be at a computer all day. Through a conversation on the street with Steve Meyer, one of the commissioners for BCEM, he encouraged Scott to take on the job. Meyer has spent decades of his own life serving in various roles managing one crisis after another. The two meeting has probably been one of the best things that could have happened for Benton County.

The retirement celebration for Hansen was packed with people from all across the state who have worked with Hansen. Clearly Hansen is held in high regard for his work in Emergency Management. Several people recognized Hansen during the ceremony. Among those were:

-a presentation by Steve Meyer, from the Benton County Emergency Management Commission 

- AJ Seely, President of the Iowa Emergency Management Association who is originally from Vinton, shared that Hansen has served on every board in the organization including serving as President. Hansen created a multiple-step program for leaders in the area of Emergency Management. Seely said that Hansen has also created the Model Coalition for Recovery.

-Dean Vrba presented a simple plaque with the Pledge of Allegiance. He began by asking Hansen how many commas are in the Pledge. Hansen quickly responded with, "Three!" When asked, Hansen explained that everyone learned the Pledge of Allegiance in Kindergarten when we all had a three-word learning capacity.  "I pledge Allegiance, to the flag, of the United States of America," He clarified that this is not how it's supposed to be said. It's a statement. He then recited it correctly. "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

-Rich Kenney with the Weather Service out of the Quad Cities, said that Hansen has been a great partner. The Weather Service declared an official proclamation, making June 28, 2013, "Director Scott Hansen Day." He remembers calling Hansen in the wee hours of the morning warning him of a derecho headed toward Benton County. He also gave Hansen an "official" FEMA preparedness Kit that included a stake to be placed in the ground and a rope to tie to his ankle.

Another woman spoke about all the disasters the county has faced and how Hansen has seamlessly handled them, thanking him for his love and dedication in serving the community. Tom Boeckmann cracked, "On the other side of that, we never had disasters until we had Scott!" which brought the house down with laughter.

A second woman said that she got into Emergency Management thanks to watching her dad who was a deputy and Scott. She decided that if Scott could do it so could she.

Another attendee who had worked in Public Health also thanked him for his leadership. Hansen also said that Public Health has been a great partner. In the early 2000s, the state instructed the Emergency Management departments to build a relationship with Public Health, but Hansen said he didn't need to, we already had. 

Hansen also expressed appreciation for his predecessor who had many things arranged when he came into the position thanks to preparation concerning the Duane Arnold plant. He said that he realized how blessed he was to have walked into this program and how privileged he was to have been able to continue to lead.

Steve Meyer, has worked with Hansen from the beginning. In 2008 Meyer was scheduled to organize a Regional Eastern Iowa exercise. As he kept an eye on the weather, he sent an email across the state inquiring if the program should be postponed because of the rain in the state and the potential for flooding. Hansen replied, "Benton County's in," and added, "Bring it on!" He immediately got a response from Jones County which read, "Hmmm, I don't think you should have said that..."

The week of the event was the week of the flood, its impact is marked by signs around town indicating just how high the water was. Many remember the courthouse lawn becoming a boat dock for those leaving the jail across the street. Throughout, Hansen was the face seen on TV stations across the area. Every time we've been hit, you would see Hansen reassuring folks that recovery is under control. While people were boating around town in 2008, he was finding generators to power the community.

Meyer who now serves as the Benton County EMA Commission Chairmab said, "I never had to worry about whether policies, plans, reports or any administrative detail was being taken care of, because he never skipped a beat and everything was done to perfection. When we had to activate the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for a disaster or even just a drill Scott had this intensity and focus on operations and coordination that was very impressionable. His devotion to his duty was so intense that during the floods of 2008 when we had the EOC operational 24/7 for a week I had to be pretty persuasive to get him to go home and get some rest after about day three and let the rest of us take over for at least a half a day."

Hansen shared some of his thoughts about his time in the department and began his remarks a little choked up, which brought a comment from his colleagues that it was okay. Hansen cracked, "There's no crying in Emergency Management."  He thanked the Board of Commissioners who helped him lead the department and guide him in decision-making. He thanked Meyer for keeping the political heat off of him throughout his career so that he could focus on the job. He explained that Meyer had helped to educate the elected officials who come and go about the need for the program. 

He also thanked Robert Spangler. Spangler is a volunteer in the department who is given a minimal stipend for insurance purposes. Spangler had worked with the previous department head and has served with Hansen. He would fill in when Hansen had to be out of the office.

He saved his most important thank you for his wife. He began his remarks with, "She's taken on more than I did. She's been behind me every step of the way and in front of me sometimes too." The couple share two special needs sons, and often caring for the two, fell on Julie's shoulders alone while Scott was working late into the night and sometimes for days when he was called away for his job. He thanked her for her support saying, "I could have never made it without her."  

Steve Meyer said of Hansen, "Scott became highly regarded amongst his peers and was quick to mentor a new EMA Coordinator from any county of our state or to render his advice for anyone experiencing a problem. He was called upon to teach classes about Emergency Management and to serve as President of the Iowa Emergency Managers Association. Whenever I was around other EMA coordinators or emergency management people it was like Scott was the standard, the one everyone tried to emulate. Benton County was truly blessed to have Scott as our EMA Coordinator for 25 years."

Knowing that Hansen was the guy in charge of every bit of chaos that was headed our way, always made me feel a bit like I didn't need to worry about things. He'd have it figured out. And every time he did. Julie, his wife, shared that she believes there was "a calling on Scott's life, and that God wired him for this job. There's no doubt that this is true. 

Benton County Emergency Management is now in the capable hands of Dean Vrba. Hansen bragged that Vrba had "gotten three things done in a week that he hadn't been able to get done in five years." He does have big shoes to fill, but he's definitely on his way to growing into them.

I've known Scott in other capacities over the last 15 years, and every time and in every venue, he's always been a stand-up guy, (in his dry humor too). He's always been a no-nonsense guy, and I have appreciated that the most. there was never a lengthy speech about what was happening. He's a type that will tell you the cold hard truth, and not beat around the bush about it. Of course, if you are dealing with emergencies, being fast and to the point bodes well for you.

I remember he was not impressed with my ability to not worry about an incoming tornado. I wrote about how I waited until the third sounding of sirens to take him seriously, his exact words were, "I'm serious when I sound the siren the FIRST time!"

Hansen always seemed to walk in with confidence to each disaster. He was prepared for anything. Floods, tornadoes, and derechos whatever it was he greeted Mother Nature every time she arrived in the Benton County zip code with his characteristic, "Bring it!" And boy, has it ever been brought.

Thank you, Scott, for all the years of making us feel safer, and for helping us pick up all the pieces when we had no idea which way the wind blew them. Thanks for being calm, cool and collected when things could have been otherwise.Thank you for taking the chaos and bringing calm. Thank you for your dedication to the community and for treating your job more as the calling that it was, rather than just another job.

So best wishes as you retire. You probably won't relax during tornado season and you'll probably watch the river rise. You'll maybe run to the basement the first time the siren goes off, but you'll most likely be out watching the storms.

In whatever you do, Godspeed.