Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Water Emergency Services topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Oconee updates water-capacity plans and emergency services staffing and equipment
Summary
Chairman John Daniel reported progress on water projects (Call Creek expansion, Upper Oconee Basin capacity increase) and summarized emergency-services status: volunteer-heavy fire/EMS, recent equipment additions, 952 fire calls in 2025 and needs for new engines, tankers and radio upgrades.
Chairman John Daniel used the address to report infrastructure and emergency-services developments.
On water, Daniel said the Call Creek expansion (3 million gallons) plant is complete and the discharge line (phase three) remains under construction; he updated the Upper Oconee Basin Water Authority project as roughly 90% design complete to double treatment capacity and said the county expects to go to bid by the end of the calendar year. He referenced a prior $42 million state award for the project and said the county committed $12 million toward it.
On emergency services, Daniel reiterated that county fire and rescue are largely volunteer-staffed except for the chief and a few administrators, and noted a recent new engine and a new tanker placed in service; a second tanker is in production. He reported 952 fire calls in 2025 with an average response time of 8.38 minutes and said 21% of calls were false alarms. Daniel also said SPLOST funds are proposed for public-safety radio upgrades (he mentioned a $6 million ask) and discussed ongoing fleet replacement needs for sheriff patrol vehicles (about nine vehicles per year; approximate unit cost mentioned at $70,000).
