HomeMy WebLinkAboutC.054.93011_1331IREDELL COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
BRIEFING MINUTES
OCTOBER 17, 2006
The Iredell County Board of Commissioners met in Briefing Session on
Tuesday, October 17, 2006, at 5:00 P.M., in the Iredell County Government Center
(South Wing Conference Room), 200 South Center Street, Statesville, NC.
Present were:
Chairman Sara Haire Tice
Vice Chairman Godfrey Williams
Steve Johnson
Marvin Norman
Ken Robertson
Staff present: County Manager Joel Mashburn, Deputy County Manager Susan
Blumenstein, Social Services Director Don Wall, DSS Work First Supervisor Linda
Bledsoe, Income Maintenance Supervisor Lynn Deal, ECOM Director David Martin,
Transportation Director Ben Garrison, Tax Administrator Bill Doolittle, Chief Deputy
Rick Dowdle, Facility Services Director Jeff Frazier, Health Director Donna Campbell,
Assistant County Manager Tracy Jackson, and Clerk to the Board Jean Moore.
CALL TO ORDER by Chairman Tice
REQUEST FROM THE LOCAL EMERGENCY PLANNING
COMMITTEE (LEPC) FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PANDEMIC
PREPAREDNESS COORDINATING COMMITTEE: Joining the board to discuss
this request were LEPC Chairman Larry Stroud and committee members Mike Bennett,
David Martin, and Donna Campbell. Stroud requested that an LEPC subcommittee be
created to develop a plan for governmental agencies and businesses to follow if
confronted with widespread influenza, or pandemics, as well as smallpox, a -coli
contamination and terrorism. He said the general public assumed that healthcare
agencies would take care of them in these situations, but this presumption was incorrect
due to the probable overwhelming need. Stroud said public awareness was needed to
change this expectation. (A letter provided by Stroud quoted the US Department of
Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt as saying, "But any community that
fails to prepare with the expectation that their state government or their federal
government will be able to take care of every town in the country will be mistaken
because that's one of the unique characteristics of a pandemic -- it happens everywhere
at once, and it requires preparedness down to the household level in order to optimize
our preparedness." Stroud said the LEPC was requesting that a pandemic committee be
created by December 31.
Chairman Tice said the committee positions could be announced at the
November 14 meeting, and the actual appointments could occur on December 5.
Commissioner Norman asked if emergency shelters had been established for this
year and if their locations could be provided.
ECOM & Emergency Management Director David Martin said the LEPC used
the American Red Cross for site locations. He said fire departments and school
facilities were often used, but he couldn't say which specific facilities would be in use.
Martin said this was because of limited manpower and due to emergency resources
going to the areas most in need.
Tice said the county's mass notification system could be used to advise people
about the emergency shelter locations.
Norman said the system could be used, assuming the phone lines were working.
Commissioner Robertson said the information made it clear that it would be the
local level's (counties and towns) responsibility to assist the citizenry, should a