MARSHALL COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) – Former Marshall County Emergency Management Agency director Anita McBurnett, who served for almost two decades, passed away Tuesday at the Marshall Manor Rehabilitation and Nursing Facility in Guntersville according to the Marshall County EMA.

The EMA in Marshall County announced McBurnett’s passing through a Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon. According to the post, McBurnett was a Lincoln, Ala. native, but had spent the last 35 years of her life in Marshall County.

McBurnett served as the Marshall County EMA director from 2005 until she retired in July 2022.

During her time as director, McBurnett won multiple awards. In 2013, McBurnett won the Alabama Association of Emergency Managers’ most prestigious honor-The Pat Neuhauser Spirit of EMA Award. The same year, the Marshall County EMA won the AAEM Preparedness Program of the Year Award under her direction.

From 2014-2017, she served as President of the Alabama Association of Emergency Managers.

The statement from Marshall County EMA says that McBurnett was “invaluable in guiding the county through numerous natural disasters including the infamous tornado outbreak of 2011 and of course the Covid-19 pandemic.”

The date for McBurnett’s memorial will be announced at a later time.

In lieu of flowers, the family says donations can be made to The Foundation for Marshall Medical Centers. Donations may be made online at foundationformmc.org or sent via mail to 2320 Homer Clayton Drive, Guntersville, AL 36976.