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City manager: Fairview emergency preparedness ‘in pretty good shape’ – staff, equipment, funds




Fairview emergency preparedness 'in pretty good shape'

Fairview emergency preparedness ‘in pretty good shape’

Is Fairview prepared for a large-scale emergency?

“We’re in pretty good shape,” City Manager Scott Collins advised during a recent the city commission workshop.

After a review of services provided by the city and equipment in each department, Collins reported back to the city commission members what the city can do and what they are not responsible for in the event of a large-scale emergency.

Fairview Police Department is primarily responsible for law enforcement, security, traffic and search and rescue. After search and rescue, they would be responsible for securing impacted areas.

“Our (city police department’s) primary needs are staffing and vehicle replacement,” stated Collins.

“Everything else, the police department is in pretty good shape on. We could respond to just about anything in our area under our control and be successful…we do need to replace some vehicles,” advised Collins.

Fire Department is responsible for basic EMT services and assist Williamson County EMS, search and rescue, perimeter and safe zone establishment, and basic access clearing.

The department’s primary need is a heavy-duty pick-up truck capable of pulling the department’s fully loaded emergency response equipment trailer. He noted the city will need to consider a second fire department in the future but cannot add additional fire department personnel until a second station is established.

“My suggestion is to consider staffing first and station second. Station is one time (expense). Staffing is recurring. So, until we can afford the recurring staffing (expenditure), the station is not really beneficial to us,” stated Collins.

Public Works Department is responsible for debris removal for the city’s secondary roads, property and right-of-ways, debris deposit locations, minimal infrastructure repair and building inspections for safety.

Primary needs to address over the next three budget years for the public works department include equipment skid steer, front end loader, excavator and knuckle boom truck.

Collins shared the Public Works Department has purchased a drone that has a thermal imaging camera which can be used for search and rescue or fire detection. Having also purchased back-up batteries and chargers, Collins said the drone gives the capability of drone 400 feet in the air for 90 minutes with a 30-minute down time. He added that Public Works Director Micah Sullivan has obtained his Federal Aviation Administration certification to fly the drone.

During an emergency, City administration is responsible for coordination of city services, public information, road closures, FEMA response management and securing contract services.

The primary administrative needs include

-an IT system upgrade to improve connectivity in the event city administrative functions could not be conducted at city hall and needed to be relocated to another city property. Collins said they have a plan to improve connectivity over the next 18 months.

– generators for auxiliary power for city hall and fire department

– crew vehicle for city hall to transport people in event of emergency

Lastly, Collins addressed the city’s Reserve Fund, money specifically set aside for an emergency.

“We’re fine now financially. We have the 10 percent reserve we’re all good on. I would like as a part of our budget ordinance to go from 10 percent to 20 percent over ten years. Just to ensure that if we have an (emergency) event, we don’t exhaust our reserve funds.

Collins clarified the city does not operate water and sewer system, school system, emergency medical services, police and fire dispatch, trash service, localized refuse collection sites, and parks and recreation facilities. He also noted the city is not responsible for major traffic routes including Highway 100, Highway 96 North, Interstate 40 and State Route 840 although the fall within the city limits.

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