Kealan is the Head of the Office of Emergency Planning. He leads this civil-military Branch of the Department of Defence in its function to support the work of the Government Task Force on Emergency Planning. He holds a MSc in Emergency Management from Dublin City University and a MA in Military History and Strategic Studies from Maynooth University, with undergraduates in Engineering from Sligo Institute of Technology. Over the last 25 years Kealan has worked with the Local Government, the Permanent Defence Forces, An Garda Síochána, Irish Aid and Civil Defence before taking up his current role in the Office of Emergency Planning.