AFTAC leaders visit Brevard EOC

  • Published
  • By Susan A. Romano
  • AFTAC Public Affairs
PATRICK SPACE FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Senior leaders from the Defense Department’s sole nuclear surveillance organization visited the Brevard County Emergency Operations Center June 24 to learn how the county responds to natural and man-made disasters.
 
Col. Creighton Mullins, commander of the Air Force Technical Applications Center, accompanied by his command chief, Chief Master Sgt. Brian Mitchell, and a cadre of AFTAC subject matter experts, traveled from Patrick SFB to the EOC in Rockledge, Fla., to discuss with EOC director John Scott and operations manager Chris Eliadis the steps the county takes in the event of an emergency.
 
The newly constructed EOC, which opened its doors in May 2024, is a state-of-the-art facility that coordinates information and objectives for 19 types of emergency support functions ranging from transportation, medical services, and law enforcement operations to public utilities, animal services and impacts to county schools.
 
AFTAC is tasked with providing uninterrupted access to nuclear event detection data to provide to national decision makers at the highest level in the U.S. government, while also operating the U.S. National Data Center, the nation’s arm of the International Monitoring System.  Because of those two critical aspects of the center’s ‘no fail’ mission, AFTAC must ensure its people are prepared for any contingency in the event of evacuation due to an approaching hurricane.
 
“Anytime we are forced to relocate to our alternate site out-of-state, it poses significant hurdles that place heavy demands on our workforce,” said Lt. Col. Anthony Anderson, commander of the 709th Support Squadron, whose unit is in charge of emergency management functions for AFTAC.  “Internally, we have several checklists we use to make certain we are meeting all the requirements to transfer our mission and safely evacuate our personnel.  We wanted to visit the EOC to learn about their procedures during storms so we can understand how decisions are made throughout the process that impact the community at large.”
 
Scott discussed recurring concerns that arise during major storms like how surge waters are typically greater from the rivers than from the ocean; that the EOC does not close down the causeways unless there is damage after the storm; and how he uses this phrase to help people decide if they should hunker down or evacuate: run from water, hide from wind.
 
“Risk analysis is used in every decision-making scenario,” Scott said.  “Whether it’s a rocket launch, mass casualty, natural disaster, or health emergency, we monitor the event and take the necessary actions to assure the health, safety, and welfare of the community, and those decisions are considered during all phases of preparation, response and recovery operations.”
 
Eliadis provided a tour of the 52,000 square-foot facility, which included their operations floor with 144 desks for first responders and key personnel; the traffic management center filled with ‘real-time’ feeds of cameras positioned at major roadways and intersections throughout the county; the Information Technology Room, the brain center for their operations; numerous conference and break-out rooms; the Public Information Room dedicated for news media use; and the Unified Command Center, Brevard County Sheriff’s Office’s 9-1-1 call center.
 
“This is an impressive facility,” said Col. Gabriel Avilla, 709th Support Group commander. “It is essential for us to maintain all critical functions of our mission, and our AFTAC Emergency Management Plan guides us through the components of emergency preparedness.  To be able to get a visual on how Brevard County operates during major storms and hear first-hand how John Scott and his team make decisions that impact the entire population of the Space Coast was incredibly valuable.”
 
Mullins extended his appreciation to staff at the EOC.
 
“I can’t thank John and Chris enough for taking the time out of their schedule – especially during hurricane season – to educate us on their procedures and for letting us tour the complex,” said Mullins.  While the goal is to never have to face a major hurricane, reality tells us it’s inevitable.  Just like in military operations, the best offense stems from max preparedness, and I believe AFTAC is better prepared with the knowledge we gleaned from our visit.”