Kelly Hubbard, director of Santa Barbara County’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM), abruptly resigned this week after the Board of Supervisors rejected a series of Grand Jury recommendations to give the department more authority and double its staffing.
Hubbard’s resignation on Thursday was effective immediately, a county spokesperson said. Stacy Silva, OEM’s associate director, has been appointed interim director until a permanent replacement is found. Hubbard could not be reached for comment, and the county declined to provide additional details about her departure.
Hubbard took the helm of OEM in 2019 after serving 14 years as emergency manager for the Municipal Water District of Orange County. She succeeded director Rob Lewin, who quietly retired amid public criticism over warnings and evacuations issued during the 1/9 Debris Flow…