October 22, 2007 Emergency Management Team Meeting Minutes
Members present:  Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director Walter Tibbetts, Board of Health Chairman William “Bill” Elliott, Select Board member Debra Pichanick, E911 Coordinator Michael Friedman, and Police Chief Thomas Harding.
Also Present: Town Administrator David C. Dann, and Administrative Secretary Leslie Bracebridge recording.
Meeting opened at 7:05 P.M.
Agenda Topics:
1. The July 16, 2007 the minutes were reviewed and accepted as written.  
2.  Connect CTY:
     a)  Status – Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director (FCEMD) Tibbetts reported on the CTY.
      b) Results of test #1 –     Total contacts selected: 622.
Total unique deliveries: 612.  (Multiple contacts may share the same number.)
 		Successful deliveries: 514 (84.0%)
                                             	Answering Machines: 240
                                             	Live delivery: 274
        		 Unsuccessful deliveries: 98 (16%)
			      	Bad phone numbers:  48
		                   	Busy: 5
			       	Fax/Modem:  4
			       	No answer: 39
			       	Undeliverable: 2
		Total E-mails Sent: 17
      Director Tibbetts got many positive response calls approving of the system and some calls saying they did not get the message.
b) Connect CTY database – Once a recipient modifies his/her data the administrator can then access all contact information for the recipient, not previously available.
e) Set date for next test – A town-wide mailing announcing the test will go out the week of Nov. 5.  The test will occur on November 13 as close as possible to 7 PM.
Other comments during the Connect CTY database discussion:
* Bill reported that Shutesbury’s first test message was shared with other towns using CTY because of its exemplary wording.
*  The Connect CTY usage policy states that it is strictly for emergencies.  For that reason, the lake lowering message developed at the Sat. Oct. 20 Lake Wyola Advisory Committee meeting was not sent out on Connect CTY. The Web Committee has a subscribed email list for people who wish to receive routine municipal announcements such as the lake lowering message.
* Precipitation and storm tracks are used by the Emergency Management Director, and the Gate and Dam Keeper to monitor and predict the lake level. The gate can be opened wide to lower the lake as quickly as possible in anticipation of a severe storm. Once the lake level reaches the spillway, a much larger quantity of water is released than through the gatehouse sluiceway.

3. Update on Lake Wyola Dam Emergency Action Plan (EAP) – Bill and Richard Brazeau, Leverett’s representative to the Dam Management Committee, hand delivered updated Lake Wyola Dam Emergency Action Plans to William Salomaa, head of the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Office of Dam Safety (ODS) in compliance with this fall’s ODS response to the original EAP. ODS has acknowledged receipt of the updated information.  Shutesbury’s engineer, Morris Root used an Army Corps of Engineers inundation map model distributed at an American Association of Dam Safety Officials meeting in the Lake Wyola EAP rather than the DCR ODS recommended National Weather Service dam break model.  Shutesbury is waiting to hear if the Army Corps of Engineers model will be accepted by ODS.  Specifications are based on the 500-year Probable Maximum Flood (PMF).
* Mr. Russell contacted Emergency Management Director Walter Tibbetts subsequent to the delivery of the revised EAP to ODS.  Director Tibbetts reassured Mr. Russell that the town is working with ODS head Salomaa.
* FOX news is doing a report on funding dam repairs that will air Wednesday, October 24.  Lake Wyola Dam may be featured as part of the story. Laura Wildman, a registered dam engineer who has been working with Bill for over a year was at the dam on Friday, October 19, with FOX News.  Laura did a one-hour visual inspection of the dam and Bill will share her analysis of the Lake Wyola Dam when he receives it. The thrust of her FOX news interview is the need for federal funding to help repair and/or dismantle old dams. It is not known if Lake Wyola Dam will be a short pan or the main focus of the story.  Laura will provide Bill with a DVD of the FOX news segment.
4. Update on Communications:   All but two of the 20 surplus portable radios received from DCR have been programmed and fitted with new batteries by Director Tibbetts.  Each has a re-charge schedule. (Two radios could not be programmed.) The goal for this week is to get the two base stations up and running.  The Highway Department’s more powerful radios have “pretty good” coverage all over town.  It is anticipated that a base station will be needed in the Lake area to remain in communication with Gate and Dam Keeper Howard Kinder.  Emergency Management officials will be able to communicate with each other through these radios. 
* Bill suggests communicating with DCR Lake Wyola Park Manager Frank Buntin to determine how that area has proven access to the Pelham repeater. 
* Bill has a scanner so that even though he wouldn’t be able to talk, he could listen and stay informed in the event of an emergency.  Debra is considering the same.
* The New Salem repeater was moved onto a cell tower and is much higher, giving Director Tibbetts much improved reception in the Prescott Rd. and Rte. 202 area.
5. Update on school safety team: – Chief Harding distributed the recommendations that the School Safety Committee made to the School Committee.  The School Committee will hold a public forum on the recommendations on October 24 and will vote on the policy at their November meeting.  The recommendation will cost about $7,000.  The practical use of the locking system will be worked out once the system is installed.  Getting people to sign-in is an important component of building security.
6.  Emergency Preparedness guides:  Director Tibbetts ordered 250 emergency preparedness guides inscribed with “Town of Shutesbury Emergency Management Team, Caring for our community, working together to be prepared.”  Guide distribution will be at public events including the flu clinic.  It was agreed that the cost of the booklets will be taken from the Emergency Management Team expense line of the budget.
7.  NIMS compliance training:   Because MEMA was behind in their deadlines, they gave towns the flexibility to determine their own levels of training above the 200 level.  The 100 and 700 trainings are still required of all people in positions that are required to have training.  MEMA expects 100% compliance with the basic 100 and 700 training.  Director Tibbetts will send a report of Shutesbury’s levels of training and a plan of compliance by January 28, 2008.  The letter will state that compliance can be met “if and only if” MEMA provides training at times convenient for volunteer staff with day jobs.  
8.  Other Old Business: 
* The newest Board of Health (BOH) member Robert McCormick is reviewing the BOH survey for follow-up actions concerning volunteers: 
o A team chart will be made of the people who volunteered to help with the neighborhood emergency notification process and 
o Those with medical training will be invited to train at the November 16, 8 AM to 11 AM flu clinic which will be run as a practice Emergency Dispensing Site (EDS). 
* It is anticipated that the survey information will be kept current by sending it annually with the census mailing.  
o The part of the survey concerning special needs will be made available to responding police and fire officers.  Shelburne control notifies responders of households that have filled out a Verizon special needs form. Perhaps Shelburne would notify responders of the BOH survey special needs list. Otherwise, lists will be given to local departments to incorporate into their response routines.  Bill will give E-911 Coordinator Michael Friedman the information for his listing and Michael will provide the information to Director Tibbetts and Chief Harding.
* As Chairman of the Board of Health, Bill recently signed the mutual aid agreement approved at town meeting, for town agencies other than police and fire.  There is language within the agreement saying that this agreement supersedes all other agreements except police and fire agreements.
* Bill commented that MEMA has adopted the Health and Homeland Alert Network (HHAN) for putting out MEMA information.  HHAN was initially developed as a public health network only, and was supposed to just be used for emergencies.  Now that it has brought in police, fire and MEMA it needs some help before it will be functional for emergencies. 
 9.  New Business:  One of the newest mandates with a June 30, 2008 deadline is a Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) for the entire town government.  A consultant will work hand-in-hand with Director Tibbetts developing a plan to keep the local government running during any kind of emergency.  The COOP will later be incorporated into the Emergency Management Plan.
10.  The next meeting will be December 17 at 7 P.M.               Adjourned at 9:00 P.M.
Respectfully submitted,
Leslie Bracebridge, Administrative Secretary    (Approved as written 12/17/2007)
071022 Emergency Management Team Minutes 1