A week after the Warren County All-Hazards Team was disbanded, it was time to talk about what to do with trucks.

During the regular meeting of the county Local Emergency Planning Committee on Thursday, Public Safety Director Ken McCorrison said the county owns four vehicles purchased by LEPC over the years.

None are “high-value” vehicles, but there are dollars wrapped up in them, and McCorrison said it is inappropriate for the committee to continue to have them.

Committee members asked about the procedure for disposing of equipment.

“Everything is titled to the county,” McCorrison said. “Technically, we have to put them out to bid.”

At least one party is already interested.

Brian Feist, hazardous materials and emergency response coordinator for McCutcheon Enterprises, which provides the county’s hazardous materials response in serious cases, said his company would like one of the vehicles.

“One of your vehicles is very appealing to us,” he said.

“United Refinery has also been reaching out to us,” McCorrison said.

The members voted to allow the executive board to meet with the solicitor to discuss the disposal of the vehicles.

At the January LEPC meeting, McCorrison announced that state guidelines indicated that the team was not in compliance. He worked with the executive board, then with the county commissioners, and the decision was made to disband the team.

Keeping it active and living up to the certification requirements would have cost “over triple our income,” he said Thursday. Bringing the team into compliance was only one problem. Keeping it there would have cost about $50,000 annually, he said. That is more than the LEPC’s entire budget of about $44,000.

That the team was not in compliance with changing state guidelines did nothing to minimize the efforts of the team and its members.

“I’d like to take a minute to recognize the members of the all-hazards team,” McCorrison said. “Those guys gave a lot of their time and energy to make that team what it was. We want to thank them for everything they’ve done for the residents and the county.”

McCorrison has been reassuring responders that the loss of the team is manageable.

“I’ve talked to every fire chief in the county,” he said. “I asked them their thoughts and comments. The consistent tone was… ‘Who is going to fill the gap? What if I need some extra pads? What if I need absorbent?'”

“The answer is EMA,” he said. “We are a resource manager. If you need equipment, we’ll do our best to make sure you get it.”

LEPC is not getting out of the hazmat business, it just no longer has its own response team.

He suggested that the county acquire trailers, stock them with hazmat response materials, and make them available at multiple points along the center line of the county.

The group has entered into a contract with Butler County Community College to provide hazmat-related training.

Agencies that would like to offer such training need only contact the LEPC. “If somebody’s having a hazmat class in the county, there’s no reason we shouldn’t pick up the bill,” he said.

WEATHER DRILL

The county’s annual severe weather exercise will be held on Friday, April 22.

The drill will include a test of all weather sirens in the county.