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EMA reports grant awards pending amounts, radio repairs and EOC progress
Summary
EMA Director (Mr. White) told the commissioners that EMPG and homeland-security grants were funded but award amounts were pending, that hazard-mitigation work is being scoping for Courts Creek and Cooley River Road, and that radio generators and batteries had failed at mountain sites but DOJ provided battery backup; an upcoming meeting with DOJ director Jamon Hal was scheduled to discuss investment in county communications.
EMA Director Mr. White briefed the board on several preparedness and communications topics.
Grants: Mr. White said the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) and a homeland‑security grant had been funded but that the state had not yet provided award amounts or recipient lists. He is continuing to work with engineers on a hazard‑mitigation grant application for scoping along Courts Creek and Cooley River Road; that application previously had an impending deadline but was granted a three‑month extension.
Communications and radios: Mr. White described recent equipment failures at mountain sites: a generator outage at Blue Mountain and a combined generator and battery failure at the Blackb site that temporarily left radios offline. Montana’s emergency communications functions recently moved from Highway Patrol to the Department of Justice; DOJ staff supplied batteries that saved about $4,500 and indicated interest in investing in county upgrades. Mr. White said he has a meeting scheduled with DOJ director Jamon Hal and the sheriff’s office to discuss potential infrastructure investments.
EOC and exercises: The Eureka EOC build‑out is nearly complete (electrical and drywall finished, flooring being installed) and the county’s annual LAR exercise was completed in April; staff updated the LAR and began drafting a continuity of operations plan. Core of Engineers inspections of levies recommended brush thinning and some tree removal; Mr. White said the county will receive an official maintenance plan for each levy.
Why it matters: Communications infrastructure (mountain top radios, backup generators and batteries) and hazard mitigation are critical for response. Pending grant awards may bring additional resources, but amounts and timelines were not available at the meeting.
Next steps: Mr. White will continue engineering work for hazard‑mitigation grant scoping, coordinate with DOJ on radio investments, and follow up with jurisdictions on hazard mitigation and levy maintenance plans.
