TOWN ADMINISTRATOR

MBTS Emergency Preparedness and Facility Planning

Posted

Watching the conflagration unfold in L.A. is sobering at best. It is hard to imagine how one begins again after such widespread destruction. Entire neighborhoods have been reduced to ash. The road to recovery will be long and arduous. And while the immediate reaction is to declare a commitment to rebuilding, any reconstruction should be done wisely to create more
resilient structures and neighborhoods. As the environment changes adjustments to the locations of our homes and businesses may need to change too.
Dealing with a disaster of this magnitude has always been my greatest fear as a town manager. Even though we have emergency plans and protocols in place, actually going through a large-scale disaster extracts a heavy toll even with the best of plans. Indeed, one can never be too prepared and it is why our public safety personnel undergo annual training and partner with other local and state agencies in case a disaster strikes here. Post-disaster plans are needed as well. Trying to decide what and where to rebuild is best done before disaster strikes.
Both Police Chief Todd Fitzgerald and Fire Chief Jake McNeilly are heavily involved in emergency preparedness efforts. They have in place mutual aid agreements with their fellow agencies throughout the region. Our staff have gone to the aid of our neighbors and in turn they would come to our aid. The Chiefs are well connected with state and federal personnel. Both are active in their respective associations. Chief Fitzgerald is a member of the state’s Emergency Management Director’s Advisory Board and sits on the MA Chief’s School Safety and Security Committee. He also was invited to attend the training academy at the National Hurricane Center in Miami where he was able to further hone his skills in disaster management. Chief McNeilly continues to advance his training as well and has quickly forged strong relationships with his counterparts in the area.
Manchester has recently updated its comprehensive emergency management plan (CEMP) and a new wildfire management strategy has been developed for the four communities of Cape Ann. A new regional shelter more inland is being established with the cooperation of a local college. An update to our hazard mitigation plan, a document that assesses possible types of disasters and steps to mitigate them, is about to get underway. Efforts continue to bolster even further regional cooperation and resource sharing.
As important as public safety agency actions are in a disaster, individuals play an important role as well. It is critical to pay attention to any emergency announcements and to follow instructions that may be issued. Sign up for emergency notices. Have a family action plan ready to implement quickly with a “go-bag” handy that can sustain you and your family members for a few days. The Town sponsored a workshop on family emergency preparedness a few months ago and will do so again in the future. In the meantime, FEMA and MEMA (Federal and Massachusetts Emergency Management Agencies) have excellent resources on the web.
Making the community more resilient to potential disasters also means investing in new facilities or hardening existing ones to withstand disasters. Both our police and fire stations lie within flood zones and thus are vulnerable to large storms and rising sea levels. The sewer treatment plant has parts of its operations literally below sea level and sits at the harbor’s edge. Changes are needed to ensure
these critical facilities can remain functioning during storm events.
The Finance Committee and Select Board are working on a long-range facility capital plan that aims to address these and other needs. A major challenge, of course, is how to fund these large capital expenses without over-burdening taxpayers. Spreading projects out over time, tackling the most urgent projects first, will be an important part of crafting an affordable plan. Examining what resources can be reallocated toward the large facility needs is also part of the game plan. But make no mistake, new bonds will be needed to pay for needed capital projects and these bonds will require higher taxes. A period of heavy reinvestment in local infrastructure is upon us.