FEMA: William L. Carwile, III
3/17/10 9:33 PM
William L. Carwile, III
Associate Administrator, Response and Recovery
Bill Carwile served as Federal Coordinating Officer (FCO) and in other
senior management positions on large federal disaster response operations
between 1996 and 2005. As FCO he served as the representative of the
President and DHS - FEMA during major disaster and emergency
declarations, orchestrating federal resources and programs in support of state
governors. Prior to becoming a full-time FCO, he served as the Director,
Pacific Area Office, FEMA Region IX.
Mr. Carwile's emergency management leadership experience includes such
large-scale disasters as Super Typhoon Paka in Guam; Hurricane Georges in
Puerto Rico; Tropical Storm Allison in Louisiana; the New York City World
Trade Center response; Super Typhoon Chataan in Guam; California Wildfires and responses and recovery
efforts for the four hurricanes that struck Florida in 2004. During Hurricane Katrina, he served as the FCO
for the Mississippi response. In these and all other disasters, he demonstrated his full understanding of the
supporting role of the federal government with state and local officials, and focused on building and
maintaining strong intergovernmental and interagency partnerships.
Following his service in the 9/11 terrorist attack response, Mr. Carwile reconstituted the National
Emergency Response Team. Efforts included developing a contingency plan and preparing the team for a
Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) event or other catastrophic disaster. He deployed the team to the
2002 Winter Olympics where he supervised preparations for possible federal consequence management
operations and served as the Senior FEMA Official in the FBI's Joint Operations Center.
During his tenure at FEMA, Mr. Carwile was awarded the Department of Homeland Security Silver Medal
by Secretary Ridge in 2004 and the Neil Frank Award at the 2005 National Hurricane Conference for his
part in developing a strong State - Federal team during the historic 2004 Florida Hurricanes.
A retired U.S. Army Colonel, Mr. Carwile completed a successful 30-year career during which he served in
command and operational staff positions in Special Forces, Infantry, and headquarters organizations.
Mr. Carwile's education includes a Bachelor's of Arts degree in Political Science and a Master's Degree in
Public Administration.
He previously served as an adjunct and subject matter expert for: the Center for Homeland Defense and
Security at the Naval Postgraduate School, Texas A&M University and the Homeland Security Institute.
http://www.fema.gov/about/bios/wcarwile.shtm
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