Columbia County will accept a 24-foot mass-casualty trailer offered through the Oregon Department of Emergency Management, commissioners agreed Wednesday, authorizing the chair to sign the grant agreement.

Corey Padron, Columbia County emergency management director, told the board the trailer — previously held in trust by Multnomah County — includes a 22-by-42 inflatable shelter, a 22-by-22 inflatable anteroom, inflatable negative-pressure units, two portable five-ton HVAC units and a generator. Padron said the unit can be used for mass triage, surge medical operations, sheltering, training and other response functions.

"It also comes with a generator. There's no limits to how we use it, just that we take care of it and that it is available for the purpose that it was built," Padron said. He added the county would be responsible for upkeep and for making the trailer available to neighboring jurisdictions when not in use.

Padron said the trailer had been inspected and that, when it arrives, he will perform an inventory to confirm the items and condition match the state's documentation. County staff said the trailer expands local emergency response capacity without the county purchasing similar equipment.

At the meeting a commissioner moved approval and the board voted in the affirmative. Padron said delivery of the trailer was contingent on a signature; staff noted the trailer team was waiting to deliver pending the contract signature.

The grant agreement was described as SP 25 101 (C-100-2025 referenced in the meeting materials). Following approval, Padron said staff will inventory and maintain the trailer and explore opportunities to display it at community events to inform residents about county emergency resources.

No new county purchase was required; the county accepted responsibility for upkeep and operational availability in exchange for the trailer's transfer.