LTC Joanne Lee is the Senior Assistant Director of the HazMat Department at the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF).

Joanne had always wanted to be part of a career that would allow her to do something meaningful for society. She found herself particularly drawn to what the Public Service Commission had to offer, while she was seeking for scholarships after completing her A Levels. This led her to an interview with the SCDF, and she eventually took up a degree in Chemical Engineering at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

After graduating from NUS, she joined the SCDF and began her 9-month Basic Officer Course. Her first posting after the course was to be a ROTA (Rotation) Commander at Tuas Fire Station, where she helmed a group of over 100 men and women. She was then posted as a HazMat Instructor to the Civil Defence Academy, where she trained students to respond to HazMat scenarios. After that, she was posted to Tuas Fire Station as Commander Fire Station before being seconded to the Ministry of Home Affairs for 3 years, dealing with policy work involving the various Home Team Departments. She returned to SCDF HQ after her secondment as a Senior Assistant Director of the HazMat Department, where she oversees the development of SCDF’s HazMat capabilities.

Joanne is part of the ASEAN-Emergency Response and Assessment Team, and may be deployed overseas to provide humanitarian relief efforts in the aftermath of natural disasters in neighbouring countries. She has also been serving the President as an honorary Aide-de-camp for about eight years as of 2019. In addition, she recently completed a Master of Public Administration degree at Portland State University in Portland, Oregon.

As part of the Life Saving Force, Joanne finds the work that she does at the SCDF to be extremely meaningful and fulfilling, as what she does everyday could be well to the benefit of the people whom she loves and cares for.

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