April 12, 2023 |
Photo – North Platte River – Bigfoot99 file photo
With spring flooding becoming a growing concern, Carbon County’s Office of Emergency Management is preparing for the worst. Emergency Manager Lenny Layman has asked towns to adopt a pre-written emergency declaration document. Layman said the declaration isn’t just for flooding. It also allows towns to request outside assistance from the county during any type of emergency.
According to an information release from the Emergency Management office, municipalities should issue an emergency declaration if a 25% chance of a severe event is possible. Layman said the emergency declaration serves as a useful reminder to inform the Office of Emergency Management of any potential disasters because an emergency could occur that he doesn’t know about.
Layman said he is working with flood prone municipalities to create an action plan should flooding occur. Of the 10 towns in Carbon County, Layman said five of them have strategies to combat high water.
As of this week, Layman said only the Town of Saratoga has agreed to use the emergency declaration document. Layman said he is confident the remaining nine towns in Carbon County will follow suit.
Layman said he will have regular calls with the National Weather Service to see what conditions are predicted to look like each week. With snow packs far above average for this time of year, flooding appears likely. Layman said he is not going to wait for towns to issue flood emergency declarations.
Layman said the emergency declaration documents are not only for flooding. Any event, that could result in significant property damage or is a threat to human life, constitutes an emergency. Layman said once he receives a signed emergency document, he will go directly to the Board of Carbon County Commissioners. If the county is unable to mitigate the problem, the commissioners will sign a county emergency declaration and request outside resources. For example, the county declared an emergency during last month’s heavy snow. Afterwards, the county was able to request a specialized tracked rescue vehicle from the state at no cost.
Layman said having a pre-written emergency declaration from the towns, allows him to already have a plan in place with the appropriate government agency. He said more time means improved planning.
Layman said it doesn’t cost the county anything to declare an emergency and end up not needing outside assistance.
