Emergency Management Coordinator Named in PS

PALM SPRINGS — Danny DeSelms, the former emergency management and training coordinator for Marine Aircraft Group 13, U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., will lead emergency management and disaster preparedness for the city of Palm Springs.

DeSelms begins his new position at the Palm Springs Fire Department on Monday, Aug. 5, according to City Manager David H. Ready.

He replaces the city’s former emergency management coordinator at the Fire Department, who left for another position. DeSelms will earn $92,352 annually.

DeSelms, is a former Marine, whose areas of expertise include emergency response planning and training. For the past year he coordinated emergency and disaster preparedness at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz. Prior to his position in Yuma, he provided emergency management expertise at multiple Marine Corps bases in Okinawa, Japan; Camp Lejeune, N.C.; Washington, D.C.; and at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms.

While in the Marine Corps, DeSelms graduated from the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense School at Ft. McClellan, Ala. He served as part of Operation Eagle during the Anthrax attacks in the nation’s capital where his teams were tasked with finding the extent of the contamination. DeSelms also served with the Task Force for Tsunami Relief Operation in Thailand following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.

“Danny DeSelms has an exceptional background coordinating emergency management and disaster preparedness for the United States Marines,” Ready said in a prepared statement. “His experience managing and responding to large-scale emergencies along with his expertise in planning and training will be a significant asset to our city and we are pleased to welcome him to the executive management team.”

DeSelms earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Emergency and Disaster Management from American Military University in 2015.

“Emergency management and preparedness is a top priority for the Palm Springs Fire Department,”  Fire Chief Kevin Nalder said in a prepared statement. “We are looking forward to working with Danny and to the wealth of experience he will bring to our organization.”