Public Employee Press

William Betz:
When duty calls

By JANE LaTOUR

ON THE JOB, William Betz is an Enterprise Technology Architect at the New York City Housing Authority. A member of Electronic Data Processing Personnel Local 2627, he provides the computer expertise to make the multiple systems used by agency Architects work together smoothly.

Off the job, Betz is dedicated to emergency rescue operations. At 15, he joined the U.S. Air Force’s Civil Air Patrol, where he is now a captain. As a member of a Community Emergency Response Team sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, he constantly updates his search and rescue skills. When he took a course on water rescues in June, he didn’t know how soon he would be called on to go into action.

During a late August camping trip with his wife Laura and their two sons, Andy, 7 and Luke, 9, Betz received an emergency appeal from Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco. Rather than have him use his own time, NYCHA designated him as its representative for the rescue operation.

By Sept. 3, his CERT was racing south by convoy, picking up supplies and 50 Zodiac boats in Maryland. They were assigned to the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. “Our two missions were search and rescue and recovery,” he explained. “We were there from Sept. 5 through Sept. 9. Folks were still stuck in houses — the elderly, people who needed medicine, people who were sick. They were glad to see us,” he said. “It was desolate. There were bodies floating.”

A search and rescue operation starts with reconnaissance experts, who decide where the boats are needed and can operate safely, and grid co-ordinators, who map out the mission, he explained. “Everyone is part of a bigger team effort,” Betz said. “Everyone does their part.”

Looking back, he is proud of the contribution his team made in the devastated area. “I feel honored to work with people who do this day in and day out, like Paramedic Joe Hudak, the really heavy-duty specialists,” he said. “It’s hard to walk away when you see so much need. I wish I could have stayed there longer.”