WASHINGTON -- FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell swore in the U.S. Fire Administration’s newest Administrator Dr. Lori L. Moore-Merrell on Monday.
An entity of FEMA, the USFA’s mission is to support and strengthen fire and emergency medical services and stakeholders to prepare for, prevent, mitigate and respond to all hazards.
“The USFA’s work is extremely important -- working with state and local fire and EMS departments and emergency responders throughout the country, we must do better to prepare for the changing landscape of what we refer to as all hazards," said Dr. Moore-Merrell. "With ever increasing incidence of wildland fire and other disasters, we must redouble our efforts to prevent ignition and harden the wildland urban interface. It’s an honor to be selected for this position,” she said. “I’m looking forward to working alongside and leading our workforce and am grateful for this opportunity and eager to further drive the mission of USFA.”
Dr. Moore-Merrell most recently served as President and CEO of the International Public Safety Data Institute. Leading the institute since 2019, after serving 26 years as a senior executive in the International Association of Fire Fighters, she was responsible for frontline interaction with elected officers, executive board members, state, provincial and local chapter leaders and individual organization members throughout the United States and Canada.
Dr. Moore-Merrell recently served on the Biden-Harris Transition Team to conduct an agency review for DHS/FEMA as part of the COVID-19 response planning. She also served on the Public Safety Committee of the Transition Teams for both the Mayor of New York City in 2013 and the District of Columbia Mayor in 2015.
As an innovative seasoned senior leader, Dr. Moore-Merrell has her doctorate degree in public health policy and data science and has received multiple awards that recognize her outstanding efforts and remarkable work in fire service, emergency response, resource deployment and data analytics.
