City officials told council on Oct. 1, 2025, that a large power outage on Sept. 23 briefly knocked both the municipal water treatment plant and the wastewater reclamation facility offline, and that coordinated staff action and emergency generator hookups prevented a major service interruption. The meeting also recognized a 13‑year‑old resident, Destiny Tolbert, with a Fire Chief's Award for lifesaving actions during a separate home medical emergency.

According to city staff, the municipal water plant lost power at about 2 a.m. and staff brought a large backup generator online within about 45 minutes; power was not fully restored to the plant until about 9:30 p.m. the same day. The wastewater reclamation facility lost both of its primary utility feeds around 5 a.m. and did not regain power until shortly after midnight the next day (12:05 a.m.). Staff said the reclamation facility was able to keep critical processes running by moving smaller generators across sites, bringing in additional personnel, and alternating power feeds; the plant recorded a single violation tied to dissolved‑solids monitoring late in the outage period.

City officials praised utility and operations staff for 24‑hour response and coordination. Melanie (Public Works) told council, “They never received power back until around 09:30 that evening... [reclamation feed] never regained power until 12:05AM the next day. This is pretty big for that department because we have certain regulations that we have to maintain…"

Separately, the council recognized Destiny Tolbert, a 13‑year‑old Stanton Middle School student, for actions on Aug. 4, 2025, when she recognized her mother having a seizure, administered a nasal medication she had learned to give days earlier, dialed 911, and followed dispatcher directions while moving younger siblings to safety. Chief Samuels read the award citation describing her calm response and credited her with helping first responders stabilize and transport her mother. The chief presented a framed Fire Chief’s Award for Citizenship and Courage and a challenge coin to Destiny at the meeting.

Why it matters: maintaining drinking‑water and wastewater treatment during prolonged outages is critical to public health; staff said redundancies, on‑site backup capacity and rapid mobilization limited regulatory impacts and helped avoid service transfers from neighboring systems. The youth award highlights community emergency response and the importance of public education about life‑saving interventions.

Next steps: staff said they will continue to review resiliency measures for both plants and pursue any corrective actions required by regulatory agencies. The award presentation will be recorded in the city’s personnel and public‑safety records.