HILO, Hawaii – The new administrator of the Hawaii County Civil Defense agency under Mayor Harry Kim had the chance to talk story with the county council last week.

Talmadge Magno was not one of the appointees on the list of department heads that require council approval. For some councilmembers, the review of the civil defense budget during the three-day Finance Committee hearing was the first chance to meet Magno face-to-face.

Magno was chosen by Kim to lead the agency in late December 2016. Kim chose Magno due in large part to Magno’s three decades of experience in law enforcement the National Park Service. That work included emergency services. For three-quarters of Magno’s NPS career he served in “special operations” through-out the United States, like Hurricane Katrina.

His Hilo classmate, councilmember Aaron Chung, knew another fact about Magno.

“He was the best running back on the island, during his day,” Chung said.