Jack Tatum, director of Homeland Security for Park County, is ramping up outreach efforts for his office.

The position he holds with the county is often called the emergency management coordinator, but he joked that he likes the county’s title better.

“It sounds way cooler so I’m going with it,” he told the Powell City Council this week during an introduction to the city as part of the outreach efforts.

Tatum took over the position at the end of June, previously working in the forest service.

“It was kind of a whim,” he said of his decision to apply with Park County.

Tatum has been working with the Powell Police Department and Powell Volunteer Fire Department to create planning and coordination in the event of an emergency.

“They’ve been good about coordinating with me,” Tatum said.

His goal is to help Powell, and other communities in Park County, be resilient and prepared. This included organizing more classes, helping develop planning and strategies for emergency response. He also helps emergency response organizations maintain their eligibility for grants to help ensure they have the resources to implement responses.

He said the most likely emergency scenario Powell would face is a severe blizzard that paralyzes the county with extreme snowfall.

“Everyone asks about Yellowstone,” he said, referring to the threat of a supervolcano eruption. If that happened, it would kill everything for hundreds of miles, meaning there’s not much for this area to prepare for.

Fortunately, that’s unlikely to happen for thousands of years.

In terms of planning, Tatum said Park County has some work to do.

“We’re pretty ill-prepared,” he said. However, there’s a caveat to that assessment: It’s based on federal metrics, which tend not to quite fit the unique characteristics of Park County. The county has a small population spread out over a wide area, and the residents are also versed in hunting and fishing.

“They’re a lot more self-sufficient and can provide for themselves a lot better,” Tatum said.

He’s gearing up to offer more community training courses, which would train volunteers for community emergency response.

“It’s a great way to meet neighbors and foster that sense of community,” he said.

However, volunteer organizations, including fire departments and charitable organizations, are having a lot more trouble getting volunteers to pitch in.

Unlike a fire department, Tatum said the training courses don’t offer as much excitement as a fire, so he expects it will be a challenge.