Commission authorizes bids for lithium battery backup; emergency manager urges better outage communications

The Coffee County Commission voted 5‑0 to authorize the emergency management director to solicit sealed bids for a three‑phase lithium battery backup power system intended to support the Emergency Operations Center, radio systems and critical county network infrastructure.

Emergency Management Director Amber Presley told commissioners she had developed a bid packet and recommended a bid deadline adjusted for an upcoming holiday. The motion authorized the director to review bids and return a recommendation to the commission. Presley said the county’s current generator performed as needed but that more modern lithium systems were the desired upgrade; she set a tentative bid deadline of July 6 to account for a holiday.

Presley also reviewed lessons learned from a recent multi‑hour outage. She said the generator at the courthouse ran continuously and critical services were maintained, but that public communications were inadequate: "I was putting out as much information as I could, and I got a lot of questions and a lot of things I couldn't answer," Presley said, and she urged clearer coordination with the city so Everbridge and other public alerts go out promptly.

Commissioners discussed which office or agency is responsible for sending immediate public notices during outages and whether cities have direct access to the county messaging platform. Presley explained that some municipal offices do not have direct access to the county’s Everbridge subscriber lists and that better coordination is needed so subscribers receive timely updates.

Commission action directs staff to publish the bid notice, solicit responses and return with recommendations for award. The technology office indicated that it will cost‑share on the project. Presley said certain vaccine storage and other critical facilities will receive additional backup and alarm coverage based on after‑action findings.