Meet Brittany Miller

Meet Brittany Miller, our Deputy Emergency Manager for Santa Rosa. In the event of an emergency, like a large-scale earthquake or wildfire, Brittany manages the City of Santa Rosa’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) where City departments come together to coordinate the response to and recovery from the disaster. Outside of a state of emergency, Brittany writes plans and procedures for citywide emergency response, trains staff on those procedures, tests staff skills during simulated-disaster exercises, maintains the City’s alert and warning program in SoCoAlert, and collaborates with other city, county, state, and federal partners through various workgroups. Brittany has been an Emergency Manager since she was 18 years old, starting as an intern at a county department in Washington State. Brittany always thought she would have a career in law enforcement but once she got the opportunity to work and help during a disaster, she knew emergency management was for her. Brittany’s best friend and her family, which Brittany fondly refers to as her own “bonus” family, live in Santa Rosa and fled Coffey Park in the early hours of the October 2017 wildfires. Based on her friend’s experience, Brittany knew if an emergency management position ever opened in Santa Rosa, that she wanted it, so she could be a part of improving the response to future disasters and helping more residents, like her friend. When Brittany is not working or managing a disaster, you can find her spending time with friends and family, traveling as much as possible, walking or playing with her pug, Otis, and spending time at our Sonoma County beaches. Despite the stress of managing emergencies, Brittany loves her job and the people she works with. She has found that there are some amazing people working for the City who are all very dedicated and passionate about what they do, especially when they all come together to respond to a disaster. Brittany faces some extremely daunting situations, in her line of work, but she thoroughly enjoys being a part of the team that helps a community through its most challenging times. Brittany thanks her aunt, who is an emergency management director in Washington State, for role-modeling what a successful emergency manager can be. Brittany grew up watching her aunt in action, and because of her, Brittany knew she wanted a career in public safety. Public safety careers allow you to make a difference in your community, and why wouldn’t a woman want to be a part of that?! Brittany encourages other women to pursue a career in public safety and suggests you ask to job shadow or request an informational interview to find out if a job in public safety is the right fit for you.