Mayor de Blasio Appoints Joseph Esposito as Commissioner, Office of Emergency Management

Esposito brings decades of hands-on crisis response experience, interagency coordination and citywide operational knowledge to the department. A lifelong New Yorker, Esposito has served in nearly every uniformed position of the NYPD, and during his 12 1/2 year tenure as Chief of Department, he led the NYPD’s planning efforts for every major event, and oversaw the NYPD’s response to every major emergency in the past decade, including the September 11th attacks and Hurricane Sandy. As NYPD’s Chief of Department, he directed and controlled the daily operations of the five major enforcement bureaus, and was instrumental in the NYPD’s evolution from a traditional crime-fighting organization to one with a counter-terrorism mission at its center, following the attacks on September 11, 2001.

OEM First Deputy Commissioner, Calvin Drayton will remain in his current role, where he oversees all day to day operations and coordination with city, state, federal, non-profit and private sector partners.

Also today, Mayor de Blasio announced that Dr. Irwin Redlener, founder and director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University’s Earth Institute, will serve as an unpaid special advisor, with a focus on emergency management and planning. Dr. Redlener is recognized as one of the nation’s leading experts on preparing for, responding to and recovering from large-scale disasters. As special advisor, Redlener will support and advise the administration’s citywide disaster preparedness and response efforts.

“OEM is on the front line of every major emergency and threat facing the city, and has to work in tandem with other agencies to prepare for and mobilize the city’s response to any major emergency, be it a hurricane, blackout, terror attack, or neighborhood crisis like the March 12th explosion and building collapse in East Harlem,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “Joseph Esposito has the good judgment to react and guide the city’s response during an emergency, and also has the experience of working as part of a team to marshal the resources of the city and execute strategies to save lives.”

“I am also pleased to announce that Dr. Irwin Redlener is going to join the administration as Special Advisor to my administration. As an expert in this field, and a physician, his innovative thinking and depth of knowledge of how we can best keep our city’s most vulnerable populations safe will prove to be a tremendous asset and we are lucky to be able to draw from his expertise,” continued Mayor de Blasio.

“Protecting the safety of all New Yorkers during a major emergency is a critical responsibility and with his extraordinary breadth of experience and proven leadership Joseph Esposito is well-suited to lead our City’s Office of Emergency Management,” said West Bronx Councilwoman Vanessa L. Gibson , chair of the Council’s Public Safety Committee. “I am particularly pleased that he has such extensive experience with the New York City Police Department and has a proven record of that includes the coordination of public safety efforts in the aftermath of the Sept. 11th attack and Hurricane Sandy. I thank Mayor de Blasio for making such a wise choice to lead such an important agency.”