County emergency management director resigns

Two years after taking the job, Springfield-Greene County Office of Emergency Management Director Chet Hunter resigned for another position.

Hunter will become assistant director of emergency management for Washington University on Sept. 1 after leaving Greene County Aug. 26, according to a news release.

“Chet has directed the Office of Emergency Management with a great deal of distinction and dedication to his position,” Greene County Presiding Commissioner Bob Cirtin said in the release. “His understanding of the complex world of emergency management and his drive to ensure the office remains a leader in this region and throughout the state, and I would even say, the nation, is something the commission greatly admires.”

Director since July 2014, Hunter is in charge of the office’s operations and supervision of command staff. The emergency operations center works to deploy disaster services, coordinates with local appointed and elected officials on policies, and makes sure plans are in place to face disasters.

“To say that this office is unique in the world of emergency management would be an understatement,” Hunter said in the release. “The level of experience and knowledge in the best practices of emergency management and disaster response that the staff here possess is a rarity I think you would be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.”

An interim director will be named following his exit. When he was hired, Hunter’s salary was $55,800.