Rick Weiland on Homeland Security

1997: Served as Regional Director of FEMA

As Regional Director he was responsible for all federal disaster response in Region VIII. Rick supervised the Federal recovery response to flooding in North Dakota and South Dakota; wild fires in Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota; tornadoes in Spencer, SD as well as on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. During his tenure at FEMA he was called upon to provide support to local law enforcement during the Columbine tragedy.

In addition to Federal disaster response, Rick lead a "historic" conference for 28 tribal nations within Region VIII. At the conference, Rick and FEMA worked to establish more effective emergency management coordination and to improve services to underserved communities on tribal reservations. The conference established the Tribal Emergency Management Coordination Council.