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Committee hears Central Dispatch, emergency management updates; prosecutor notes five pocketknives removed at courthouse
Summary
Central Dispatch and Emergency Management provided project and operational updates, including a Motorola console timeline and FEMA approvals; Prosecutor Cynthia Muszynski and Chair Lucille Bray said courthouse security checks have already resulted in five pocketknives being removed.
Central Dispatch and Emergency Management staff updated the Alpena County Courts & Public Safety Committee on communications projects, training and recent operational developments on Jan. 16, and the committee also discussed courthouse security measures following recent screening results.
Central Dispatch Director Kim Elkie told the committee that recent quarterly meetings for the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), Local Planning Team (LPT) and the Central Dispatch Committee were productive. Elkie summarized call-volume statistics, said the new dispatcher is nearing completion of training, and reported that a December meeting hosted in Alpena drew about 50 communications directors. A computer-aided dispatch (CAD) integration project with the fire departments and EMS had stalled temporarily for technical reasons but has since been resolved. Elkie said FEMA approved emergency protective-measures expenses and verified donations related to recent events; she added the kickoff meeting with Motorola on a dispatch-console replacement has occurred and the project is expected to be finished by the end of March.
Emergency Management Director Nic Modrzynski briefed the committee on his first LEPC and LPT meetings, a Fire Chiefs meeting he attended, a site visit to Amrize to plan future joint exercises, and his registration for the North American Active Assailants Conference. Modrzynski noted one emergency-management vehicle would not start and that he expects to begin Professional Emergency Manager coursework in March. The committee received and filed the Central Dispatch and Emergency Management updates.
Chair Lucille Bray and Prosecutor Cynthia Muszynski discussed courthouse security steps already in place. Muszynski told the committee that courtroom security measures — asking individuals to empty pockets, checking bags and wanding — had resulted in five pocketknives being removed as of 10:30 a.m. She invited committee members to sit with her during circuit court to observe courtroom conditions.
Next steps: dispatch console work is scheduled to continue with an end-of-March target for completion; FEMA-related cost approvals are in place for specified emergency protective measures; committee members will receive further courthouse security updates next month.
