MARION CO. EMA // PUBLIC INFORMATION · TRANSPARENCY LEDGER · OPERATIONAL
DOCUMENT · ABOUT & TRANSPARENCY
About &
Transparency.
Marion County EMA exists to coordinate the County's preparation for, response to, and recovery from disasters and emergencies. This page is our public-trust ledger — leadership, oversight chain, after-hours protocol, partner agencies, accessibility, and how to get records or report concerns. If a fact below is out of date or missing, email Cody Rose at crose@marionco.illinois.gov.
SECTION I · LEADERSHIP
EMA leadership & staff.
Marion County EMA was consolidated in 2026, with Andrew Strong serving as the County EMA Coordinator. The City of Salem retains its own Department of Emergency Management (separate website: salemdoem.us) — the Salem City Council formally approved the appointments on 2026-03-17 per The Sentinel: Director Deputy Chief Tyler Rose (Salem PD, trose@salemilpolice.org) and Assistant Director Travis Sanders (Salem Public Works Director, (618) 548-2222 ext 27). Functionally, all operations are handled by Andrew at the county level; for incidents involving the City of Salem, Tyler and Travis serve as city points of contact, with Tyler additionally coordinating in his Salem PD role during critical incidents. The inter-governmental agreement between the City of Salem and Marion County may still be pending final signature — direct any clarification questions to the Salem City Manager. Centralia ESDA remains a separate agency on the County personnel page.
EMA Director · 90-01 · Site Administrator 🔑
Andrew Strong
Director / Coordinator. Sole EMA Coordinator for the consolidated agency. Authorized administrator on this site (Cloudflare Access).
Deputy Director · 90-02 · Site Administrator 🔑
Shane Mansker
Deputy Director. Oversees staff, operations, response protocols, SOG, Division units, training, building & fleet management. Authorized administrator on this site (Cloudflare Access).
Operations Captain · Rescue Division · 90-04
Justin Montgomery
Operations Captain over Divisions 2 & 3 — Rescue Operations (RTF / SAR / WRT) and Drone Response Team.
Operations Captain · T.I.M. · 90-05
Jarrod Burner
Operations Captain over Division 1 — Traffic Incident Management Unit (Centralia + County).
Lieutenant · Division 1 (T.I.M.) · 90-07
Jamie Wilkins
Lieutenant commanding the Traffic Incident Management Unit.
Operations Captain · 90-06
Vacant
Reserved for future regional / functional command assignment.
SECTION II · DUTY OFFICER PROTOCOL
After-hours / 24-7 activation.
CRITICAL · EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION PATH
All after-hours emergency notifications and EMA tasking go through Marion County 9-1-1. Call 9-1-1 for any active emergency. For non-emergency after-hours notifications that require EMA action, call Marion County 911 dispatch at (618) 548-3685 and request the Marion Co EMA on-call duty officer.
Marion 911 will reach the appropriate on-call EMA staff member. Do not attempt to use individual staff cell numbers as the primary after-hours channel.
Why this protocol
Routing through 911 dispatch ensures the on-call rotation is honored, the call is logged in CAD for after-action and FOIA purposes, and the right resources (LE, fire, EMS, EMA) are activated together. The 911 Center is co-located with Marion Co EMA HQ at 1999 S Marion St, Salem.
SECTION III · OVERSIGHT & ACCOUNTABILITY
Reporting up the chain.
Marion County EMA reports to the Marion County Board through the Board's EMA Sub-Committee. Statutory authority derives from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act (20 ILCS 3305) and the IEMA Administrative Code (29 Ill. Adm. Code 301). Operational doctrine is NIMS / ICS.
County Board · District 4 · Site Administrator 🔑
Cody Rose — Board Liaison, EMA Sub-Committee
Board oversight of EMA operations, mission, staffing, and grants. Public point of contact for EMA Sub-Committee matters. Authorized administrator on this site (Cloudflare Access).
Marion County Board · Chair
Steve Whritenour — Board Chair
Signs the local emergency declaration under 20 ILCS 3305 when an incident exceeds routine response capability. Also serves as Marion Co Board Rep on the ETSB.
Marion County Board
Full Board · Sub-Committee structure
Board agendas, minutes, and committee assignments are published by the County Board office. Public attendance and public comment are part of the standing meeting protocol.
Connect · MCEMA on Social Media
Follow, like, or share Marion County EMA
Real-time updates on local incidents, weather alerts, road closures, training opportunities, and community preparedness posts. The best channel for non-critical situational awareness.
Live feed · MCEMA on Facebook
Recent posts from the Marion County EMA Page
Pulled live from Facebook via the official Page Plugin. Loads only after the page finishes rendering, so it does not delay the rest of this page. If the embed fails to load (ad blocker, private browsing, etc.), the direct link and Like/Follow/Share buttons above still work.
Live feed · @mcoilema on Instagram
Recent posts from MCEMA
Pulled live from Instagram. Loads only after the page finishes rendering, so it does not delay the rest of this page. If the embed fails to load (ad blocker, private browsing, etc.), the direct link above still works.
Statutory Authority
20 ILCS 3305 · 29 IAC 301
Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act and IEMA Administrative Code. Establishes the County EMA, accreditation requirements, and the role of the Coordinator. See
EOP §1 Authorities for the full citation list.
SECTION IV · LEPC
Local Emergency Planning Committee.
The Marion County LEPC is the federally-required body for SARA Title III hazmat planning under EPCRA. It maintains the SARA Tier II reports for tank-bearing facilities, plans for hazmat response, and conducts public outreach. Membership includes EMA, fire, LE, MCHD, hospitals, transportation, media, community groups, and facility representatives.
⚠ Public meeting schedule & minutes — pending publication
The LEPC meeting schedule, public attendance protocol, and minutes archive are not yet published on this site. To request the next meeting date or attend, contact Cody Rose at
crose@marionco.illinois.gov. Once the schedule is finalized for 2026 it will be posted here.
SECTION V · VOLUNTEER ROSTER
Three paths in.
How to volunteer
MCEMA — OHS Membership
Three operational Divisions (T.I.M., Rescue Operations, Drone Response Team) plus a dedicated EOC Operations group. Apply by emailing both Director Andrew Strong and Board Liaison Cody Rose. Full process, ranks, and partner programs (CERT, Skywarn, ARES/RACES, Red Cross, MRC) on the Get Involved page.
Partner agency roster
Vetted personnel for accountability + ID
Partner agencies operating within or alongside Marion County can submit rosters for inclusion in the restricted personnel directory — to aid the EMA Coordinator in accountability and positive identification of vetted emergency and disaster personnel during austere, unplanned, or chaotic events.
MRC volunteers
Marion County Health Dept
SECTION VI · PARTNER AGENCIES
Key contacts, by function.
MCSO — countywide LE
Sheriff Kevin W. Cripps
Chief Deputy
Anthony Decker. Jail Administrator
Troy Reed. 204 N Washington St, Salem.
(618) 548-2141.
MCHD — ESF-8 lead
Administrator Melissa Mallow
Emergency Preparedness Coordinator
Bill Thouvenin. Director of Clinical Services
Caitlyn Crain. 118 Cross Creek Blvd, Salem.
(618) 548-3878 Salem ·
(618) 532-6518 Centralia.
911 / ETSB
Justin Draper, ENP
Marion County 911 Coordinator. PSAPs operated by Centralia PD (west) and Salem PD (east). Salem also serves as MABAS Division 47 backup PSAP. 1999 S Marion St, Salem (co-located with MCEMA HQ).
(618) 548-3685.
MC Highway Department
Engineer Alex Kreke
ESF-1 / ESF-3 lead. Snow plow staging, county road maintenance, debris clearance.
(618) 548-3887.
Centralia ESDA (separate agency)
Dir. Bob Moulder
Distinct from MCEMA. Centralia ESDA is its own agency — Bob Moulder, Daniel Dean, and Eli Bromley are Centralia ESDA personnel and are not MCEMA. They appear separately on the consolidated personnel page.
MC Coroner
Claude L Howell
Statutory authority over deaths in Marion County including officer-involved, in-custody, and unattended/suspicious.
(618) 548-3870.
MC State's Attorney
Prosecutor Timmothy Hudspeth
State-level criminal charges, Drug Court representation, federal coordination with US Attorney for Southern District of Illinois.
(618) 548-3860.
SECTION VII · REGIONAL PLANNING — SCIRPDC
South-Central Illinois regional planning.
South Central Illinois Regional Planning & Development Commission
Serves Clay, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper, and
Marion counties. Common author and updater of county Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plans for the region. Marion County's MHMP currency must be kept inside its 5-year window for HMGP eligibility.
120 S Delmar Ave, Suite A, Salem, IL 62881 · (618) 548-4234 ·
scirpdc.com.
SECTION VIII · PUBLIC RECORDS / FOIA
Records are public.
Marion County EMA is subject to the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140). Most operational records, after-action reports, and grant documents are releasable on request, subject to statutory exemptions for personnel privacy, ongoing investigations, and security-sensitive information.
How to request records
Email a written FOIA request to Cody Rose at
crose@marionco.illinois.gov with the subject line
"FOIA Request — [topic]". State the records you seek with reasonable specificity, your contact info, and whether you prefer electronic or paper copies. The County will respond within 5 business days as required by
5 ILCS 140/3.
SECTION IX · ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT
Available to everyone.
30 ILCS 587 — Illinois Information Technology Accessibility Act
Marion County EMA is committed to making this site accessible to people with disabilities, consistent with Illinois Information Technology Accessibility Act (IITAA) standards and WCAG 2.1 Level AA where reasonable.
If you encounter any content on this site that is inaccessible to you, or you need an alternative format (large print, screen-reader-friendly document, or oral briefing), please contact Cody Rose at crose@marionco.illinois.gov or call Marion County 911 dispatch at (618) 548-3685 and ask for the EMA on-call. We will work with you to provide the information in an accessible format within a reasonable timeframe.
Known accessibility limitations of the current site include: dependence on JavaScript for the live operations map (we are scoping a server-rendered fallback for the major layers), and limited alternative-text on a small number of decorative images (audit in progress). Both items are tracked for remediation. The previously-flagged mobile-narrow navigation has been resolved — a responsive hamburger menu is in place site-wide as of May 2026.