Alabama Resilience Council begins a new chapter for storm resilience efforts in our state

Contact: Jennifer Bowen
(334) 269-3550

9/1/2023

This week, we took an important step toward building a stronger Alabama that is better prepared to weather natural disasters that strike our state.

The Alabama Resilience Council held its first meeting at the Capitol on Wednesday. The goal of the council is to help Alabama prepare for storms ahead of time so that we recover more quickly once they’ve passed.

The council is a public-private partnership that combines the expertise and perspectives of several state agencies, along with federal and private partners. It is co-chaired by Insurance Commissioner Mark Fowler and EMA Director Jeff Smitherman.

By bringing different perspectives to the table, the council will take a holistic approach to resilience so that we build stronger, help save lives and protect Alabama’s economy.

“We can continue to lose lives and property, repeatedly spend taxpayers’ money, and miss out on opportunities to bring jobs to Alabama – or we can do something different. We can continue to be surprised and unprepared for evolving causes of events with negative impacts across our state – be they natural disasters, cyber-attacks, a health scare, or something totally unforeseen today, be it local, regional, or statewide – or we can do something different,” Insurance Commissioner Mark Fowler told the council. 

“By our participation in the Alabama Resilience Council, we are choosing to do something different, to address adverse circumstances and losses in advance. This will not be a short-term effort.”

Thanks to Governor Kay Ivey for both establishing the Alabama Resilience Council and lending her encouragement and support at our first meeting.

“Protecting the wellbeing of our people both physically and financially should be the top priority shared by leaders at all levels of government, so today, I call on you to look to past disasters that challenged our state, and incorporate new strategies to better serve all Alabamians,” the Governor said.

We look forward to the work that lies ahead of us.

For more about the Alabama Resilience Council, visit https://www.safestrongal.com/.



Governor Kay Ivey addresses the Alabama Resilience Council. 



Insurance Commissioner Mark Fowler addresses the Alabama Resilience Council. 



Alabama Resilience Council co-chairs Jeff Smitherman, center, and Mark Fowler, left. 

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