Crises up the stakes for the ‘master of disaster’

Jared Moskowitz makes his living off disaster, but not even he expected what 2020 had in store for him. There’s been a global pandemic and civil unrest. Now, he’s facing a hurricane season that is projected to be one of the worst on record.

“The only thing left is to have a volcano erupt off the coast of Florida,” Moskowitz said.

The 39-year-old state emergency management director and Broward County native is quick with a joke, but he knows his job is deadly serious. He’s the guy in Tallahassee responsible for ensuring that masks get to front-line health care workers. His agency has doled out millions of dollars in emergency contracts to stockpile supplies for the coronavirus pandemic.

Moskowitz is usually at Gov. Ron DeSantis’ side at news conferences outlining the state’s coronavirus response. In Moskowitz’s line of work, the wrong choice could cost people their lives. That’s what he says keeps him up at night.

“I understand the stakes of