Ambrusch hired as coordinator of Bradford County Emergency Management Agency

BY JAMES LOEWENSTEIN (Staff Writer)
Published: August 26, 2011

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TOWANDA - Bradford County has a new emergency management director.

John Ambrusch III, who has been serving as an emergency management coordinator for a township in southeastern Pennsylvania, was hired Thursday as the full-time coordinator of the Bradford County Emergency Management Agency.

Ambrusch is a Pennsylvania state certified emergency management coordinator and has been the emergency management coordinator for Douglass Township in Montgomery County for almost two years.

Ambrusch, 36, has also been a volunteer firefighter for the Gilbertsville Fire & Rescue Company in Douglass Township for almost four years.

Ambrusch served in the U.S. Army and the U.S. Army Reserve for a total of eight years, where he served as a tank commander and a squad leader in the military police. Ambrusch was also a certified EMT while in the military.

Ambrusch graduated from Souderton High School in Souderton, Pa., and holds an Associate's Degree in Fire Science from Montgomery County Community College. While in college, Ambrusch was inducted into the National Honor Society.

The coordinator of the Bradford County Emergency Management Agency has a critical role in planning for and responding to large scale emergencies that could affect the local area, such as large-scale flooding or a hurricane. The coordinator is also involved in setting up training for emergency responders in Bradford County, and is involved in planning for and responding to emergencies that could involve the local gas industry.

Ambrusch replaces Francis "Skip" Roupp, who has been serving as the interim coordinator of the Bradford County Emergency Management Agency since June 2011. Prior to Roupp, the position had been held by Robert Barnes, who was promoted in June to Bradford County public safety director.

Ambrusch's hire was recommended by Barnes, and was approved unanimously by the Bradford County commissioners. Ambrusch will be paid an annual salary of $28,860. Ambrusch's hire is effective Sept. 6.

Barnes said it was an "extremely difficult" decision to pick a new EMA coordinator for the county, because there were so many excellent candidates who applied for the position.

Sixteen candidates were interviewed for the position by phone or in person, Barnes said. Seven candidates were called back for a second interview, which was conducted by a team of interviewers, including Barnes, Bradford County Personnel Director Mark Agutter, Roupp, Derrick Hall of the Bradford-Susquehanna EMS Council, and Sharon Lowery of the Bradford County Emergency Management Agency.

Barnes said that all seven candidates who were called in for a second interview were excellent candidates, but Ambrusch was the candidate that best met the needs of the county, given the changes that are taking place in the county.

The position of Bradford County EMA coordinator was advertised on the Internet and in local and regional newspapers.

"I look forward to taking Bradford County into the 21st Century," Ambrusch said in a telephone interview on Thursday. "I plan to introduce technological advances utilizing a greater range of resources to better manage incidents and responses."

Ambrusch declined to discuss the technological advances he would introduce until he had a chance to talk to staff in the Bradford County emergency services department.

James Loewenstein can be reached at (570) 265-1633; or e-mail: jloewensten@thedailyreview.com.

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