“N37 ensures communities are prepared to survive and thrive during any incident - ensuring the community is healthy, capable, and resilient,” explained Will Luna, Navy Region Hawaii Emergency Management Officer. “When emergencies occur, the Regional Dispatch Center (RDC) is available 24/7/365 to answer 911 calls and dispatch first responders. When catastrophic incidents occur our Reserve Sailors are there to help respond, recover, and coordinate with Department of Defense and State officials at all echelons.”
N37 also provides real-time gathering, analysis, and dissemination of information through the Regional Operations Center (ROC) and administrative support to the CNRH Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) Detachment.
Comprised of more than 80 active duty and reserve Sailors, Airmen, civilians, and contractors, N37 is responsible for manning, training, and equipping installation and region emergency management programs, the ROC, and the emergency/911 RDC. N37 provides oversight and administrative support to the Navy Reserve CNRH ROC unit as well as the Navy Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer (NEPLO) unit. The NEPLO program is entirely comprised of Navy Reservists. The fact that there are no active-duty equivalents performing the liaison role makes them unique. (
See Navy Region Hawaii N-Focus: Spotlight on Defense Support of Civil Authorities Hawaii (N3N DSCA).
“Hurricanes and tsunamis are the most catastrophic. However, the things that keep me up at night are damage to the port and community preparedness. There is less than a two weeks supply of food and water in Hawaii at any given time and any disruption to the logistic chain could be devastating,” said Luna.
N37, in concert with the State of Hawaii, the City and County of Honolulu, sister services and other protection partners and stakeholders ensures its installations are ready to deploy
32 core capabilities outlined in the FEMA National Response Framework to save lives and protect property in the event of incidents such as hurricanes, tsunamis and wildfires.
“What am I most proud of? The people working in N37. Our goal is to keep everyone in our communities safe and these selfless professionals show up every day to do just that. The proof of their excellence is readily apparent in the feedback they receive from leadership: eight civilian of the quarter awards in the last two years and the Honolulu-Pacific Federal Executive Board (HPFEB) Team Excellence award (RDC) in 2023,” noted Luna. “I couldn’t be prouder to be their leader.”