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A swift water rescue team from Clackamas Fire District, which has quietly been building capacity, was deployed on its first mission Thursday to bolster emergency flood response after major flooding in neighbouring Washington State.
Oregon EMAC Mission Deployed To Assist Washington Flood Emergency Responders
After the Washington Emergency Management Division requested assistance during the recent major flooding, the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM) deployed a six-member swift water rescue team from the Clackamas Fire District on a seven-day mission.
Tidings Data Snapshot
Oregon to Washington flood mission : what it looks likeSource: Oregon OEM press release (Dec 12 2025) and Washington EMD EMAC guide (Dec 2016)DailyTidings.com
Coordinated through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, or EMAC — a national mutual aid system that enables states to share resources during disasters, the deployment is the first EMAC for Oregon’s swift water rescue team.
| EMAC point | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| State to state compact | Requests and offers run through state emergency management agencies |
| Governor declared emergency | The impacted state’s governor declaration is the trigger for EMAC sharing |
| Reimbursable | The requesting state reimburses the assisting state after the mission |
| Protections | Includes workers comp, license reciprocity, and liability protections |
| Not allowed | No self deployment / no county to county moves / does not replace federal support |
Oregon’s 125th National Guard is also ready to deploy if needed, and the state’s drone resources from the State Preparedness and Incident Response Equipment (SPIRE) program are available, with county-level pilots prepared to assist.
Kelly Jo Craigmiles, emergency program coordinator with the OEM Response Team, said, “Oregon is proud to stand with Washington during this challenging time.”
Clackamas County’s SWIFT Team Shows Why Oregon Can Send Flood Rescuers Across State Lines
Built as a joint fire and sheriff operation, Clackamas County’s SWIFT Team is a FEMA Type 1 swiftwater and floodwater rescue team that already responds in and out of Oregon through EMAC. Ongoing exercises included:
At Sandy River Airport in August, the Oregon Army National Guard aviators and Clackamas Fire’s Water Rescue Team completed groundbreaking training that could revolutionize the state’s response to flood emergencies.
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