The Cascade County Disaster and Emergency Services coordinator role is once again vacant.

Ron Scott tendered his immediate resignation on Jan. 31, according to county officials, but no reason was given for the resignation.

New county DES coordinator selected

Capt. Scott Van Dyken of the Cascade County Sheriff’s Office has once again stepped in as acting DES manager.

The county announced in May that Scott has been selected for the DES position and he started June 1.

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Scott was formerly an assistant chief at Great Falls Fire Rescue.

Cascade County Commissioner Joe Briggs told The Electric that discussions are underway with the CCSO regarding the possibility of folding DES into that office, but “until that discussion has concluded, we will not be posting the position.”

In the meantime, Van Dyken will fill the DES coordinator role in the event of an incident and a full-time county staffer will continue coordinating the day-to-day activities of the DES office, Briggs said.

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In a May 2019 release selecting Scott, Briggs said, “we had several fine candidates, but Ron’s experience with fire operations and his understanding of emergency services made this choice clear.”

The release said, “the County Commissioners are pleased with their decision and look forward to working with Ron in this new capacity.”

Before Scott’s selection, Van Dyken had been the acting DES coordinator while former coordinator was on administrative leave during an investigation that resulted in a criminal charge. The county announced in November 2017 that it had selected Stevens for the DES job, which had been vacant since June 2017 when Vince Kolar retired.

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The DES coordinator/emergency manager position administers, plans and coordinates the activities disaster and emergency services for the entire county, including the City of Great Falls.

The position duties include oversight of the Cascade County emergency medical services/quick response units, volunteers who provide immediate medical response in the outlying rural sectors of Cascade County, often before Great Falls Emergency Services arrives on scene, according to a county release. The coordinator also serves as the county fire warden; and oversees the emergency preparedness and response functions for the county.

The position is also responsible for preparing the county’s emergency operations plan and the pre-disaster mitigation plan; as well as facilitating the Local Emergency Planning Committee meeting.