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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20.10.01 - Minutes, Emergency Services Advisory Council Emergency Services Advisory Council Washington County, Maryland Page 1 of 3 REGULAR MEETING Date: Thursday, October 1, 2020 Attending: R. David Hays, Director, Emergency Services, Ex-Officio Dale Fishack, President, WCVFRA, Ex-Officio Kingsley Poole, Chairman, Citizen-at-Large Dick Hopkins, Co-Chairman, WCVFRA Scott Buskirk, Citizen-at-Large Ron Horn, Citizen-at-Large Roger Otzelberger, Jr., WCVFRA Joe Kroboth, Citizen-at-Large Tim Ammons, Citizen-at-Large Bonnie Keltner, Administrative Assistant Guests: Randy Wagner, County Commissioner Jon Hart, Asst. Dir., Fire Operations William Ball, Chief, Williamsport FD Dave Chisholm, Asst. Director, EMS Operations Absent: Dwayne Lunsford, Citizen-at-Large Gary Farrell, President, Funkstown FD, WCVFRA CALL TO ORDER: • Chairman Poole called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. Minutes: • MOTION: On a motion by Dale Fishack and seconded by Ron Horn, the ESAC members approved the minutes of the August 6, 2020 meeting as presented. CARRIED Washington County, Maryland Emergency Services Advisory Council Meeting Thursday, October 1, 2020 Page 2 of 3 New Business: DES Director’s Report – Director Dave Hays • DES was awarded funding from FEMA under the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant. Dir. Hays and Asst. Dir. Jon Hart explained what the SAFER grant provides. A long discussion followed. This grant will provide funding for DES to hire and train 33 personnel to provide initial emergency response for regions identified within Washington County as a supplement to the fire departments in those areas. This grant is different from previous years in that SAFER will provide the full funding for three years of the grant. It was noted that there would be a training program for those hired to address the additional training needed and to provide team building. Frederick County has offered the use of their Fire Training Academy for this training. It was also noted that the County Commissioners approved dropping the minimum age for applicants from 18 years to 16 years, which will enable those students graduating from the Tech High School program to be eligible for employment in this program. • Halfway Fire Dept. was awarded an AFG grant for Self-Contained-Breathing-Apparatus (SCBA). This is a participation grant for 10-companies. Draeger, Scott, and MSA are being considered. During the discussion that followed it was noted that the two manufacturers under consideration were Scott and MSA. The fire departments in Washington County predominantly use Scott, with others using MSA. Of the 10 companies that were considering this opportunity, five were currently using Scott and five were MSA. Three of the departments using MSA indicated that they would be willing to accept the Scott. It was noted that while the MSA product had some unique features to consider, the Scott product would provide interoperability to the Hagerstown Fire Department and the departments throughout Washington County using Scott. The benefit of all departments using Scott would provide an increased level of safety for emergency responders in the County. Also, there would be a cost benefit of purchasing the number of SCBA allowed by the grant from the same manufacturer. The share each company is responsible under the grant is 10% of the cost. It was noted that if the departments agree to purchase the Scott product, Washington County could provide the 10% cost for them as an incentive. It was also noted that Hagerstown Fire Department has personnel that can provide service and maintenance for Scott SCBA. • Dir. Hays is working with Dave Chisholm and Kevin Lewis regarding the paramedic program. WCVFRA Report – President Dale Fishack • A new officer standard is complete and has been adopted by the Association. Discussion followed about member compliance with this standard. • Working on physicals with Oley Griffith. • President Fishack and Oley are working with Health@Work on alternative hours to enable responders to obtain their physicals. Washington County, Maryland Emergency Services Advisory Council Meeting Thursday, October 1, 2020 Page 3 of 3 Remarks for the Good of the Council • MOTION: On a motion by Scott Buskirk and seconded by Joe Kroboth, it was agreed to recommend that all the fire departments participating in the above grant opportunity to go with Scott for their SCBA purchase. CARRIED • Joe Kroboth suggested the above motion should go before the County Commissioners. They should be advised that it is for responder safety concerns and that the County provide the 10% share for each fire department as an incentive. The SCBA Committee should also be informed of this action. • Joe Kroboth wants ESAC members to be provided data on EMS on a monthly basis. • Chairman Poole discussed about the city and county working together. • Ron Horn brought up about the ESAC not accomplishing anything at the meetings. Much discussion followed about the role of ESAC and actions taken during previous meetings. It was decided to discuss the issues in the work session on November 12, 2020. Adjournment • MOTION: With no other business brought forward, a motion was made by Tim Ammons and seconded by Dick Hopkins to adjourn the meeting at 9:20pm. CARRIED. Next meeting: • November 12, 2020, 6pm • Location: DES Downstairs Training Room 16232 Elliott Parkway Williamsport, MD 21795 Respectfully submitted by, Bonnie Keltner, Administrative Assistant Washington County Div. of Emergency Services, Kingsley Poole, ESAC Chairman, & Richard Hopkins, ESAC Co-Chair