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Codington County emergency management reports siren failures, church fire response and approves MOU with Watertown School District
Summary
The county's emergency management director reported outdoor warning siren issues and a recent church fire, the commission approved an MOU with the Watertown School District for use of the extension complex during emergencies, and the board declared obsolete Search and Rescue equipment surplus for destruction.
Andrew, Codington County emergency management director, reported May 27 that his office ran a tabletop exercise at the airport with police, fire, TSA, Prairie Lakes and airport staff, prepared repeaters for summer and identified maintenance needs for the outdoor warning siren network.
"The outdoor warning sirens, they continue to be a little bit of an ongoing challenge," Andrew said. He reported two sirens with battery failures — one between Grace Lutheran and Jenkins Townview and one just north of the County Highway shop on Fourteenth Avenue — and said a few others showed battery concerns. He said the office will follow up with targeted maintenance and will meet with local fire chiefs to review capabilities and training opportunities.
Andrew also said he and a colleague responded to a fire at a local church and reported the incident to the state, noting that reporting to state authorities is a standard requirement. He described several routine preparedness tasks, including getting LEMPG quarterly paperwork submitted and printing credentialing cards for neighboring counties on request.
On formal actions, the board approved a memorandum of understanding with the Watertown School District to allow the county extension complex to be used as a drop-off/pickup location or mass-sheltering point during a large-scale emergency event. Commissioners discussed adding the MOU to the county's emergency plan as an annex; Andrew said it can be integrated. Commissioner McElhaney moved, Commissioner Johnson seconded, and the motion carried.
The board also declared Search and Rescue equipment surplus to be destroyed — commissioners accepted staff recommendations that kennel equipment is no longer needed, and that a failing power compressor and an obsolete digital camera be removed from inventory. The motion to declare the items surplus and to destroy them was moved by Commissioner Schwer and seconded by Commissioner Gable; the motion carried.
Why it matters: The reported siren battery issues identify potential gaps in the county's early-warning capability that emergency management will need to address ahead of severe-weather season. The MOU gives the county and Watertown School District an agreed site for large-scale student movement or emergency sheltering and will be added to planning documents, per discussion at the meeting.
