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Taking on a new challenge

Starting in February, Dan DeSmet will be the new Lyon County emergency manager

Photo by Deb Gau Dan DeSmet, currently the manager of North Memorial Ambulance in Marshall, will be transitioning into a new job starting in February — he will be the new Lyon County Emergency Manager. The job comes with a new set of challenges, but DeSmet said he also has years of experience in emergency response, and relationships with other responders, to draw on.

MARSHALL — He’s worked with emergency situations for his whole career. But starting next month, Dan DeSmet will be making the transition to something new. Instead of being the responder in an emergency, “It’s an opportunity to plan for those events,” he said.

DeSmet, the current manager of North Memorial Ambulance in Marshall, will be the next Lyon County emergency manager. He will be filling a position vacated when previous emergency manager Tammy VanOverbeke retired in November.

“We’re excited to have him,” said Lyon County Sheriff Eric Wallen. In searching for a new emergency manager, it was good to have a local candidate with a lot of experience and emergency management certification, he said.

The Lyon County Board voted on Jan. 21 to approve DeSmet as a full-time county emergency manager, with a start date of Feb. 10. At the board meeting, county Human Resources director Carolyn McDonald said DeSmet was one of two finalists out of an original pool of about seven applicants.

DeSmet said Monday that he will be working full-time as county emergency manager, and will no longer be the ambulance manager in Marshall. However, he said if possible he may sometimes still work as a paramedic.

Wallen said one of the good things about DeSmet as an emergency manager candidate was his background.

“He has a lot of hands-on experience, in a sense,” Wallen said.

DeSmet has been an emergency responder for over 20 years. He grew up in the Minneota area, and returned to Lyon County after graduating from St. Cloud State University. He became a paramedic in 1997, and served as a Lyon County Sheriff’s deputy for about nine years. DeSmet has managed North Memorial Ambulance in Marshall since 2005. Over that time, he said, North Memorial has responded to some major incidents, including the 2008 Lakeview School bus crash, which involved cooperation among many different ambulance and law enforcement agencies.

With the county emergency manager position, DeSmet said, “I had the opportunity to bring all that together.”

“I think he’ll step in easily,” Wallen said. Because of DeSmet’s background, he also has working relationships with the different emergency response groups in the county.

But while that background is helpful, both Wallen and DeSmet said the job of an emergency manager goes beyond the immediate response to emergencies.

“In a sense, it’s preventative,” Wallen said. The county emergency manager does a lot of planning work to help with situations ranging from major industrial accidents to weather disasters and even disease outbreaks. The job involves working with federal and local agencies, agriculture and industry, as well as communicating with the public.

“It’s going to be a challenge,” DeSmet said, but he also thought his background would help make the transition easier.

The county emergency manager position is overseen by the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office. Wallen said the Sheriff’s Office receives a state grant with a 50% local match, which is used to fund the emergency manager’s wages. This year, the grant is for about $22,000, Wallen said.

When county board members voted to approve DeSmet as emergency manager, they also approved a starting pay grade of $25.48 per hour.

DeSmet said he will be working with North Memorial over the next couple of weeks on a transition of leadership at the Marshall ambulance service.

DeSmet said part of what he enjoyed about working in emergency medical response and law enforcement was “the constant day-to-day differences that come up.” The emergency manager position will come with a new set of challenges, he said.

“I’m looking forward to having this opportunity,” DeSmet said. “I look forward to working with area agencies.”

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