‘Opportunity arose’: Horry County’s top emergency preparedness employee to retire

The man who led Horry County through several floods, hurricanes and emergencies is retiring after 30 years of service.

Randy Webster, 54, director of the Emergency Preparedness department for the county, said on Monday he will retire July 31.

“Opportunity arose that I was not seeking,” Webster said in an email when asked why he was leaving. He did not give any specifics as to what’s next for him.

“It has been a tremendous privilege to work alongside all of the members of Horry County Government to serve our community, especially during times of disaster,” Webster said in a prepared statement from Horry County Government.

During Hurricane Florence, Webster led emergency operations from the evacuation of all three hurricane evacuation zones to the flood recovery effort. He received national attention for his efforts, a visit from President Donald Trump and his department was named “Agency of the Year” by the South Carolina Emergency Management Association.

Webster has more than 35 years of public safety experience in Emergency Management, Emergency Medical Service and Fire Service. In 2016, he was named the director of the year for emergency management.

“Randy Webster has given decades of selfless service to this organization and he will be deeply missed,” Assistant County Administrator for Public Safety Joe Huffman said in a prepared statement.

This story was originally published June 3, 2019 at 6:13 PM.