Warrington sworn in as new FEMA Region 2 administrator

By The Star Staff

David Warrington was sworn in Wednesday by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell as regional administrator for Region 2, which includes Puerto Rico, at a ceremony at One World Trade Center (1WTC).

President Biden appointed Warrington on Jan. 20 to serve as regional administrator for Region 2, of FEMA, which is under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security.

Warrington’s appointment will be critical to the president’s efforts to rebuild communities most impacted by the pandemic, the economic recovery, and climate change. He has almost 20 years of experience in the public sector, according to a FEMA press release.

Most recently Warrington was the senior manager of strategic preparedness for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, where he was responsible for developing an all-hazards risk management program to assess complex threats and lead the evaluation of mitigation strategies.

Since 2014, Warrington has led the advancement of next-generation technology for the authority’s chemical, biological and radiological defense efforts. In 2019, he oversaw the review of and comprehensive updates to all the Port Authority’s emergency operations plans.

Throughout his career Warrington has served in a leadership capacity for all command positions within the Port Authority’s incident command structure, including responses to Hurricanes Sandy and Irene, the U.S. Airways flight 1549 crash into the Hudson River, and numerous named winter storms.

Additionally, he had a lead role in coordinating Port Authority resources to support Super Bowl XLVIII in New Jersey, and the 2015 Papal visit to New York City, both designated National Special Security Events.