Delaware County to apply for EMPG grant, hire contractor to update emergency plan and approve major fire-safety purchases

The Delaware County Board of County Commissioners voted May 5 to apply for a $24,500 Emergency Management Performance Grant and to contract with Nimbus Resilience Solutions to update the county Emergency Operations Plan (EOP), actions commissioners said would strengthen local emergency preparedness.

Commissioner Jake Callihan moved to apply for the EMPG and to engage Nimbus; Commissioner David Beck seconded and the motions carried unanimously. Emergency Management Director Jeff Reeves told the board the EMPG now must be used for a specific project and said updating the statutory EOP is a timely use of the funds. The grant requires a 50/50 match, which Reeves said would make the county’s share about $12,250 if the full $24,500 is awarded.

The board also approved a $161,776 quote from Techsico for fire suppression equipment and monitoring covering three commissioner barns plus the new sheriff’s office and the election board office in the former Arvest building, to be paid from the county’s Use Tax account. Reeves described the package as including software and a digital building map; Chairman David Poindexter said the purchase was justified by the value of county buildings and recent barn fires in neighboring counties.

Commissioner Poindexter moved, and Commissioner Callihan seconded, to approve an estimate of $6,723.75 from Stolz Telecom to buy five hand-held radios with docking stations for Emergency Management (to be paid from the Emergency Management maintenance and operations account). Reeves said the radios replace units previously reassigned to volunteer firefighters.

Separately, the board approved financing through Bank of Grand Lake for a 3,000-gallon tanker truck for the Cleora Fire Department. Case Hampton of Bank of Grand Lake said the truck’s total price is $438,838, with $238,338 to be financed at 4.53 percent over 10 years and annual payments of $30,269.47. The financing was approved by motion of Commissioner Callihan.

Why it matters: The combined measures are intended to modernize county emergency operations and protect county property and emergency-response capacity. The EMPG-funded EOP update would clarify procedures and statutory compliance; the suppression system, radios and tanker aim to reduce response times and equipment loss in the event of fire.

What’s next: The EMPG application will proceed and the county will execute an agreement with Nimbus if the grant is awarded. The Techsico and Stolz Telecom purchases will move forward under the approved funding sources; the Cleora Fire Department financing is in place and payments will be made on the stated schedule.

Quotes and exchanges: Resident Rocky Carroll, speaking during public comment on related agenda items, raised a local-address concern about two roads called "Daytown"; Rod Neal of Delaware County E-911 responded, "no dispatching is done by road names. All roads are identified by their number and when a call comes in, the dispatchers see the road number address on their interactive map," explaining how dispatch determines incident locations. Reeves told commissioners the EMPG change "means the money must now be used for a specific project" and that the EOP statutory update fits that requirement.

Budget and funding notes: The EMPG requires a 50 percent local match (county share approximately $12,250 if the grant is awarded). The Techsico purchase is to be paid from the Use Tax account; the radios from the Emergency Management M&O account; the Cleora tanker will be financed through a lease/purchase agreement.

Limitations: The board approved application and contracts; the EMPG award is not guaranteed. Several equipment purchases depend on vendor quotes and funding availability; the mower purchase discussion was deferred pending further information.

Attendance and vote record: All motions cited in this article passed on unanimous roll calls: Commissioner David Poindexter — yes; Commissioner Jake Callihan — yes; Commissioner David Beck — yes.

Ending: The meeting moved on to other agenda items after the emergency-operations and equipment approvals.