Partners in Preparedness: Ellis Honored for Emergency Services Leadership

Brandon Ellis wears several hats, including Georgetown County Emergency Services Director and Emergency Manager. His leadership saw the Emergency Services Department recognized as Agency of the Year by the South Carolina Emergency Management Association (SCEMA) in 2023. And this year, Ellis was honored by SCEMA as Director of the Year. 

Ellis has nearly 15 years of emergency management experience and has served Georgetown County’s Emergency Services Department since 2019. His recognition as Director of the Year highlights his dedication to enhancing the emergency management capabilities in Georgetown County. 

“We have worked very hard to develop and maintain a well-rounded and fundamentally sound emergency response team in Georgetown County,” Ellis said. “Our emergency response team extends well beyond our traditional emergency response agencies and includes many partners and stakeholders from our municipalities, voluntary organizations and even the private sector. These relationships, and the capabilities that these partner agencies bring to the table are essential to our community’s preparedness and response to the numerous hazards we face, as well as our resiliency after any event.” 

The county’s Emergency Services Department also has intentionally bolstered the voluntary agencies that operate throughout Georgetown County to develop a capability to address community needs as a part of disaster recovery support at the local level. According to Ellis, these voluntary organizations active in disaster, or VOADs, have been instrumental in assisting residents impacted by recent disasters that did not trigger federal assistance. 

And Ellis has plans to continue growing Georgetown County’s capacity to respond to emergency situations in the future.  

“Moving forward, we hope to add additional staff members to help enhance our public outreach and education capabilities, while also supporting the training needs of our emergency services partners across the county,” he said. “We also hope to secure funding in the near future to construct a new, state-of-the-art emergency operations center that would serve as a hub during a major disaster in Georgetown County. It’s not a matter of if a major disaster will impact our area, but when. And we must be ready.”