Memorandum
City of
City Manager’s Office
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TO: |
David L. Corliss,
City Manager |
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FROM: |
Jonathan Douglass,
Assistant to the City Manager |
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CC: |
Ron Olin, Police
Chief Mark Bradford, Fire
Medical Chief Dave Wagner,
Utilities Director Chuck Soules, Public
Works Director Lisa Patterson,
Communications Manager |
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DATE: |
July 1, 2009 |
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RE: |
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The Douglas County Emergency Operations Plan describes
the management and coordination of resources and personnel during periods of
major emergency. This plan was originally developed by committees comprised of
senior planners and managers of the departments and agencies with key roles during
emergencies or disasters. An update was completed in early 2009 and has been
adopted by Douglas County, Lecompton, Eudora and Baldwin City. The City of
Lawrence is requested to adopt the plan by adopting Resolution No. 6840.
The plan, when adopted, serves as a Memorandum of Understanding between the
city and the county regarding duties of their respective departments during an
emergency.
The plan has been reviewed and approved by city
departments involved in emergency response, including Police, Fire Medical,
Public Works, and Utilities. The plan is kept and maintained by the Douglas
County Emergency Management Department. According to the plan, the City of Lawrence
Public Works Department is the primary agency responsible for public works and
engineering, the Fire Medical Department is the primary agency responsible for
hazardous materials and radiological emergencies and is also responsible for
firefighting and search and rescue as part of the Douglas County Fire Chief’s
Association, the Utilities Department is a primary agency responsible for
utilities, the City Manager’s Office is a primary agency responsible for
long-term community recovery and mitigation, and the Communications Manager is
responsible for external communications through the Lawrence-Douglas County PIO
Group.
Staff recommends approval of this plan with one
condition: that the city/county funding arrangement relating to hazardous
materials is revisited in conjunction with the 2011 budget process. The city does
not have concerns with the operational matters related to hazardous material
response, but does have concerns about the equity of the funding arrangement.
Currently the city pays for 74.36% of Fire Medical Department operations and
the county pays for 25.64%. The other cities in the county pay nothing,
therefore when a hazardous materials incident takes place outside of the City
of Lawrence, city residents are paying for the overwhelming majority of the
costs of that response (as they pay all of the city portion plus most of the
county portion). The city also pays the overwhelming majority of the capital
equipment costs related to hazardous materials response. The county in recent
years has budgeted around $27,000 annually for hazardous materials equipment,
but the city, under the current arrangement, would be paying for 100% of the
cost to replace the hazardous materials vehicle in 2012 – an estimated expense
of $750,000.
In addition to the Douglas County Emergency
Operations Plan, city departments have and continually adjust their own
emergency plans and procedures as necessary. The Fire Medical Department is
currently working on an analysis of the city’s NIMS (National Incident
Management System) training compliance; a requirement for federal preparedness
and recovery assistance programs. To meet these requirements staff is also exploring
options for providing emergency operations training to City Commission members.
ACTION: Adopt Resolution No. 6840, adopting the
Douglas County, Kansas Emergency Operations Plan.