Wasco County accepts ODHS shelter package of containers and supplies; intergovernmental agreement approved

The Wasco County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved Intergovernmental Grant Agreement No. 1855855 with the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) to accept a Type 1 shelter package that includes three 40-foot shipping containers and associated supplies.

Sheridan McClellan, Wasco County Emergency Management, said the containers arrived at the county fairgrounds as part of a package under House Bill 3409, section 86, and include shelving, generators, solar panels (to arrive later), tents, water, two pallets of MREs, communications equipment and other shelter supplies. “They were part of the type 1 package that we applied for,” McClellan said. She estimated the supplies would support sheltering about 250 people when set up alongside county facilities.

McClellan referenced prior equipment the county received through ODHS, noting a “clean air can” that supplied insulation and heating/air conditioning for existing fairgrounds buildings used by the Red Cross. According to McClellan’s remarks citing Red Cross figures, the industrial building can house about 125 beds and the smaller arts-and-crafts building about 45 beds when configured for sheltering.

County commissioners moved and seconded approval of the intergovernmental grant agreement; the board voted unanimously in favor. Staff confirmed that acceptance of the package requires signing the claim form that acknowledges receipt of the equipment.

Details provided in the meeting included that solar panels and additional supplies were expected later in the month and that staff will integrate the containers with existing fairgrounds shelter capacity for emergencies. The dollar amount of the grant was not specified in the meeting transcript.