William Brockmann Long (born April 6, 1975) is an American emergency manager who served as the Administrator of the

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Ex ...

(FEMA). He was appointed to the position by President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

in April 2017 and confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and po ...

in June 2017. He served until his resignation in March 2019, following criticism of his handling of the

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was a deadly Category 5 hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the worst natural disaster in recorded history to affect ...

and an ethical complaint over using official vehicles.

Education

Long grew up in Newton, North Carolina, graduating from

Newton-Conover High School Newton-Conover High School (NCHS) is a public high school located in Newton, North Carolina, and is the one of two secondary schools in Newton-Conover City Schools system, alongside Discovery High School. Athletics The school is a member of t ...

. He received his B.S. in criminal justice and M.P.A. from

Appalachian State University Appalachian State University (; Appalachian, App State, App, or ASU) is a public university in Boone, North Carolina. It was founded as a teachers college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and the latter's wife, Lillie Shull Dough ...

. He also graduated from the

Naval Postgraduate School The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD c ...

's Executive Leadership Program at the

Center for Homeland Defense and Security The Center for Homeland Defense and Security at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, California is a school focusing on homeland security education. The Center's programs and resources have been developed to advance the study of home ...

Career

Long was an emergency management official in Georgia, where he served as the Statewide Planner/School Safety Coordinator for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency from September 1999 to November 2001. He worked for the

as Hurricane Program Manager from November 2001 to January 2006. Long was the Southeast Regional Director for Beck Disaster Recovery from February 2007 to February 2008. Long headed the Alabama Emergency Management Agency from 2008 to 2011 under Governor

Bob Riley Robert Renfroe Riley (born October 3, 1944) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 52nd governor of Alabama from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he previously represented Alabama's 3rd district in the U. ...

and developed the state's response to the H1N1 influenza. During the ''Deepwater Horizon'' oil spill, he was the State Incident Commander for the Alabama Unified Command. In 2011, Long joined the emergency management consulting firm

Hagerty Consulting Hagerty is a surname People with this surname include: * Barbara Bradley Hagerty, author and reporter for NPR * James Hagerty (1909–1981), American White House press secretary under Dwight D. Eisenhower * John K. Hagerty (1867–1945), Americ ...

, where he was executive vice president.

FEMA Administrator

President

nominated Long to be administrator of the

on April 28, 2017. On June 20, 2017, he was confirmed by the

with a vote of 95 to 4. In August 2017, Long faced the first major

natural disaster A natural disaster is "the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community". A natural disaster can cause loss of life or damage property, and typically leaves some econ ...

of his tenure in the form of

Hurricane Harvey Hurricane Harvey was a devastating Category 4 hurricane that made landfall on Texas and Louisiana in August 2017, causing catastrophic flooding and more than 100 deaths. It is tied with 2005's Hurricane Katrina as the costliest ...

. He stated that the hurricane would likely be recorded for Texas as "the worst disaster the state's seen," with the recovery period expected to take "many years." Weeks before, he had told interviewers that his biggest concern was major

hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Dep ...

preparedness. Long received widespread praise for his handling of the federal response to Hurricane Harvey. He was also criticized for his response to

. In September 2018, ''Politico'' reported that Long was under investigation by the FEMA inspector general because he allegedly used government vehicles to commute between Washington, D.C., and his home in

Hickory, North Carolina Hickory is a city located primarily in Catawba County, with formal boundaries extending into Burke and Caldwell counties. The city lies in the U.S. state of North Carolina. At the time of the 2020 census, Hickory's population was 43,490. Hickor ...

. ''Politico'' reported that Homeland Security Secretary

Kirstjen Nielsen Kirstjen Michele Nielsen (; born May 14, 1972) is an American attorney who served as United States Secretary of Homeland Security from 2017 to 2019. She is a former principal White House deputy chief of staff to President Donald Trump, and was ...

, concerned about Long's frequent absences from Washington due to his regular six-hour drives between Washington and Hickory, asked Long to consider resigning his position, which Long declined to do. In February 2019, Long announced his resignation as FEMA Administrator, effective March 8, following questions over his use of his government vehicle. His deputy, Peter Gaynor, succeeded him as acting administrator.

Post-FEMA

Brock returned to Hagerty Consulting as an executive chairman in April 2019.

References

External links

Biography at FEMA
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Long, Brock 1975 births Appalachian State University alumni Federal Emergency Management Agency officials Living people People from Hickory, North Carolina People from Newton, North Carolina Trump administration personnel