Melissa Pexton was appointed Deputy Commissioner Strategy and Emergency Management for Western Australia in May 2022. Melissa has 20 years’ experience in the emergency management sector at a national, state and local level.
Ms Pexton has served as the Cyclone Seroja State Recovery Controller since April 2021 providing leadership to a whole-of-government recovery operation and was previously Director, Risk, Capability and Analysis at DFES.
She was also the Deputy Chair of the State Emergency Management Committee (SEMC) and has held positions of Executive Officer and Chair of the SEMC Recovery and Community Engagement subcommittee.
Previous to her roles at DFES, Ms Pexton was the Manager Emergency Management for the Western Australian Local Government Association (WALGA), an independent, membership-based group representing and supporting the work and interests of Local Governments state-wide.
Ms Pexton held positions with Emergency Management Western Australia (EMWA) as Principal Policy and Planning Officer and Manager Community Emergency Management Services overseeing the WANDRRA, NDRP, AWARE and regional staff.
Ms Pexton commenced her career in emergency management at the Fire and Emergency Services Authority (FESA) working with communities, emergency service volunteers and staff, alongside local governments to build resilience and understanding of the impacts of natural hazards in the community.