Ángel Jiménez Colón, commissioner of Puerto Rico’s Bureau of Emergency Management and Disaster Administration (NMEAD), resigned effective November 30, 2026, Governor Jenniffer González Colón announced on Thursday, November 12. Francisco Bruno will hold the post on an interim basis. A press release said Jiménez Colón had committed to only one year in the job and stayed for two, and that he will return to work for the municipality of Bayamón.
That time limit was not disclosed when the governor nominated him. González Colón said she valued that he accepted her request to stay one more year to cover the hurricane season after his initial one-year commitment. Jiménez Colón said serving Puerto Rico at the head of NMEAD had been an honor.
His tenure included the purchase of 36 transport and rescue units for $2,583,076.50 in federal and state funds to reinforce the 10 operational zones and the central level, including three wagons equipped with specialized rescue tools. With the Fire Bureau, NMEAD took part in adding eight tanker trucks bought through a joint $2,318,776 investment from the Emergency Reserve to carry potable water during service interruptions.
With the Puerto Rico Department of Public Safety (DSP) and the Human Resources Administration and Transformation Office, 29 employees who had held temporary appointments for four to 16 years moved into regular career posts, and 133 employees received uniforms at a cost of $61,365.61. Zones and state control handled more than 650 incidents and training reached more than 5,700 public servants.
Preparedness exercises were held in all 10 zones and a large-scale earthquake drill with the PR-USAR state search and rescue task force, and 32 search and rescue specialists were readied in under 48 hours to assist Jamaica. The CERT community program trained about 3,500 participants, and the first Emergency Management Educational Summer Camp was held. Jiménez Colón prepared a transition plan on the bureau’s projects, commitments and operations.