With hurricane season on the horizon, May presents an opportunity to learn about potential risks and better understand how hurricanes can affect you, your family, and your community. This month, we spoke with Hagerty’s Director of Response and former Director of Public Safety and Emergency Management for Lee County, Florida, Lee Mayfield, to discuss his career path, the challenges of preparing for and responding to hurricanes, and important preparedness reminders ahead of the upcoming Atlantic Hurricane Season, beginning on June 1.
Lee Mayfield, Hagerty’s Director of Response, is a proven emergency management leader with over 17 years of experience in disaster planning, response, and recovery – specializing in state and local coordination, training and exercise, mass care, evacuation prioritization, and crisis response. Growing up in Miami, Florida, Lee experienced first-hand the devastating impacts hurricanes and tropical storms can have on communities. When reflecting on some of his personal encounters with hurricanes, Lee recalled when Hurricane Andrew made landfall in South Florida as a Category (CAT) 5 hurricane in 1992, and how a storm of this magnitude impacted his family.
“Hurricane Andrew was a significant event for all of South Florida, and that hurricane was a driver of a lot of change in the emergency management profession, policy-wise. My family was fortunate in that our home only had moderate damage, but many were not that lucky. Andrew was certainly a landmark storm for those in Miami-Dade County.”
Lee remarked that experiences like Hurricane Andrew were what ultimately sparked his interest in a career in emergency management. After earning a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Florida State University (FSU), Lee went on to work in various emergency management roles at both the state and county levels in Florida. From 2017 to 2021, he served as the Director of Public Safety and Emergency Management for Lee County, Florida, where he oversaw and supported the county’s response to and recovery from Hurricane Irma in September 2017.
When asked what led him to Hagerty, Lee noted, “I was always impressed with the professionals at Hagerty Consulting. The Hagerty team was growing on the response side, and being able to be a part of that was really attractive. I’m very fortunate to be here and to be able to work with some of the best emergency managers and consultants in the country with Hagerty.” In 2021, Lee became Hagerty’s first official Director of Response.
With more than a decade of emergency response experience, Lee has gained many valuable insights regarding hurricane preparedness activities. When asked about what he believes are the biggest challenges in preparing for and responding to hurricanes, Lee stated, “Every storm is different; every hurricane is different.” Each state and territory across the United States (US) has varying risk levels and capabilities based on factors such as funding and staffing that influence communities’ abilities to respond and recover from hurricanes. Lee reminds us that “effectively responding and recovering from hurricanes takes a year-round effort. It’s not just something we do in the two weeks leading up to hurricane season—it takes a lot of work.”
One insight he shared is that “time spent planning before a hurricane will pay off tenfold.” Additionally, Lee emphasized the importance of partnerships. “The biggest lesson learned across our profession is developing the relationships, the friendships, those partnerships that will allow us all to work together during a storm.” As he puts it, emergency managers identify resources based on needs and what is available through relationships built with other agencies, departments, and governments. So, according to Lee, “partnership is the keyword of the day as we prepare for hurricane season.”
Hurricane preparedness also comes down to the individual level. Lee recommends that “individuals have multiple ways to receive key information from decision-makers. In the day and age of social media, make sure you bookmark or highlight key elements of information and always listen to your state and local officials.” He also emphasized the importance of communicating your emergency plan, including where to shelter in the event of an evacuation and how to communicate with friends and family. “All that can be done now, making things a lot less stressful when a storm threatens.”
From a community perspective, Lee states that “No jurisdiction is prepared to handle an event on their own. Therefore, it is important for communities to identify those gaps and develop strong partnerships. Ask yourselves, what partners do you have on speed dial that can assist and provide resources as part of your response and recovery team.”
Earlier this month, in preparation for what forecasters say will be an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season, Lee joined meteorologists, emergency managers, first responders, public health professionals, and policymakers in West Palm Beach, Florida, for the 38th Annual Governor’s Hurricane Conference (GHC). This year’s conference theme, “From Forecast to Action,” highlighted that successful hurricane response and recovery requires year-round efforts and involves many stakeholders. GHC organizers planned 33 training sessions and 57 workshops on topics ranging from financial recovery and disaster logistics to how to lead effectively through a crisis.
“What impresses me about this conference is not only the wide range of topics but also the speaker lineup. Those selected to lead trainings and workshops are some of the best practitioners in the business and leave attendees with real information they can take back and implement in their home jurisdictions.”
The GHC has four sponsoring agencies – the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM), the Florida Emergency Preparedness Association (FEPA), the National Weather Service (NWS), and the American Red Cross. All agencies and their partners should be applauded for their contributions to a great week full of timely hurricane season discussions, including addressing disaster housing challenges following disasters, maximizing federal funding resources, proactively building relationships with non-governmental organizations, and implementing debris management best practices.
For more information on Lee’s key takeaways from this year’s conference and how communities can prepare for the upcoming hurricane season, read our 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Outlook blog.
To learn more about Hagerty’s work coordinating facilities and personnel to serve disaster-impacted communities, visit our Response page here.
Lee Mayfield is Hagerty’s Response Director and is a proven emergency management leader with over 17 years of experience in disaster planning, response, and recovery – specializing in state and local coordination, training, exercises, mass care, evacuation prioritization, and crisis response. Prior to joining Hagerty, Lee served as the Director of Public Safety and Emergency Management for Lee County, Florida, where he oversaw and supported the county’s response and recovery from Hurricane Irma in 2017.