Nevada County now officially has a separate Emergency Services Department. And the first-ever department head will be Craig Griesbach, starting next Monday. Griesbach has been the county’s Building Department director, during his first nine years in the county. He says more leadership is needed to help create additional response capacity…

click to listen to Craig Griesbach

Most recently, Griesbach coordinated free green waste events. And he says reducing wildfire fuels will continue to be a big focus of his job…

click to listen to Craig Griesbach

Griesbach says the primary role for the Emergency Services Department is to support the first responders during events and also help the community prepare for and prevent future emergencies. Meanwhile, County Agriculture Commissioner Chris de Nijs will also be serving as the interim Building Director while a formal recruitment for a permanent replacement is done.