Council approves emergency operations plan and interim fire leadership contract amid public dispute

The East Bethel City Council on March 24 authorized the city's Emergency Operating Procedure (EOP) plan, subject to final review and adoption by the mayor, city administrator, interim fire chief and city attorney. The council also approved a month-to-month consultant contract to provide interim fire administration and leadership.

Jerry Stripe, who has been assisting with fire-department administration, presented the department report and recommended council approval of the EOP. Stripe said the Emergency Operation Plan is required by state law and is intended to clarify the roles of officials and department heads during disasters and to guide training. Stripe described work he has done over the prior year, including surveys of firefighters, policy updates, recruitment planning and an assessment of department operations. He said the department currently has 29 firefighters and that training and an updated EOP will be part of a recruitment push.

After discussion about the plan's confidentiality, training and the council's role in reviewing localized items, Councilmember motioned to authorize approval of the EOP "subject to review, approval and adoption by the mayor, the city administrator, the interim fire chief, any other applicable law enforcement and city attorney." The motion passed.

During the consent agenda the council approved a monthly consultant contract authorizing an interim leader at a total monthly compensation figure comparable to the former chief's combined hourly and cafeteria contribution. The consultant said he will work roughly 40 hours per week in an administrative capacity, will not act as an on-scene firefighter and will respond to major incidents as an advisor in his personal vehicle; he said he lacked the employment insurance protections to perform hands-on firefighting. The contract includes a 30-day notice period to terminate the agreement by either party.

Members of the public addressed the council during public forum on the fire department issue. Krista Vaughn, who identified herself as a long-time resident and the daughter of former fire chief Rodney Sano, said Chief Sano had received only one performance review since his 2022 hire, disputed findings in the capstone report about call volumes and personnel needs, and urged the council to reinstate Chief Sano. Another speaker, Sharon Metzel, described historical community support for the department and urged peace in the community. The interim consultant and the chief deputy from Anoka County described ongoing cooperation between the sheriff's office and the department.

Council discussion touched on the volunteer model, the balance between medical and fire/rescue calls, the need to protect emergency plans from public distribution, and the difficulty of recruiting and retaining volunteers. The council voted to approve the EOP authorization and the consent-agenda contract. The council did not record individual roll-call votes in the meeting transcript for these items.