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Home My WebLink AboutLEPC Minutes 01.10.2024/ Minutes – January 10, 2024 New Hanover County EOC Attendees Name Business Name Business Jonathan Barfield, Jr County Commissioner Josh Schieffer Duke Energy Andrew Dwyer American Red Cross Christopher Smith NHC Sherrif Department Jason Fuller NHC Emergency Management Ron Stancil Sturdy Corporation Allen Hancock NCDOT John Stephenson City of Wilmington Fire Department Audrey Hart NHC Emergency Management David Stone NHC Fire Stan Harts Alcami Corporation: LEPC Chair Jeff Suggs NHC Health Department Tina Kuhr GE Hitachi Michael Thompson American Red Cross Bill McKay NHC Emergency Management Carla Turner NHC Public Health Frank Meyer NHC Fire and Rescue Mark Venters GE Hitachi/Global Nuclear Fuels Debra Nagle NHC Emergency Management Linda Willis NCDEQ Div of Air Quality Rhonda Olson UNC Wilmington; LEPC Secretary Welcome and Introductions The meeting was called to order by Stan Harts, LEPC Chair, at 11:04 AM. LEPC Members present introduced themselves. Reminder of LEPC Conference tomorrow (Jan. 11, 2024) at Aloft Hotel. Spots still available to sign up. Review and Approval of November 8, 2023, LEPC Meeting Minutes The minutes of the November 8, 2023, meeting were passed out. Mark Venters moved that the minutes be approved; Frank Meyer seconded the motion. The minutes were approved by unanimous consent. Discussion Topics Review of Statutory functions and bylaw functions of LEPC -The LEPC has an annual reporting requirement including reauthorization, showing 9 of 12 competencies met, due the 1st week of January. Bylaws may need to be reviewed to make sure competency requirements are addressed more clearly. Revisions of bylaws must be presented and approved by the board of commissioners. Applications for potential LEPC grants must be submitted to the state by Emergency Management by the end of November. Emergency Management will also request budget approval for the grants which will need board approval to accept. Grants require quarterly reports for all activity on the grant to include documenting meetings and listing funds spent. The LEPC does not have a budget. All NHC LEPC expenditures are grant funded. Priorities for 2024 Increase Membership and Involvement – Promote membership by increased opportunities for education, relevancy, and outreach. Outreach to include first responders and industry partners to help assist with exercises. Grant Award 2024 – Awarded Hazmat emergency preparedness grant (yearly award). Grant is active Oct 1, 2023 – Oct 31, 2024, in the amount of $10,000. The grant was written for an exercise. A member asked if there is a restriction on the type of activity? The response was no, it is just focused on providing exercises. This is not the same grant as the one funding the conference. Assemble membership resource list – List would be intended to facilitate mutual aid through identifying who would be able to supply the specific resource needed. Member Announcements Conference Committee – There are 102 registered. Check-in starts at 7:30 am, first speaker starts at 8 am. There are conference bags for attendees. The conference will provide a light breakfast, lunch, and afternoon coffee. Speakers include – ePlan, State Police/HazMat for carrier safety network, Wilmington Fire Regional Hazmat Response, NCEM, NCDEQ. Alcami – TTX exercise season starts in April. The storms yesterday created minimal but widespread impacts at several sites. Sherriff’s Office – The curriculum is being assembled for in-service training to include hazmat and Brunswick Nuclear Power Plant support. Duke Energy – The offshore wind lease off Bald Head Island is still valid; however, the county commission has not given approval to proceed. It is expected this will be revisited due to growing demand for electrical power. Red Cross – A new disaster program specialist (Kira Reyna) has been hired to support regional efforts. NHCEM – Everyone is encouraged to come to the conference tomorrow. NHCEM is willing to assist/participate in any upcoming exercise/TTX planning. NHC Fire Rescue – Annual in-service training kick-off will happen soon. A 4th deputy fire marshal will be hired who will also help promote LEPC. Deputy Fire Marshal Frank Meyer announced his intent to retire at the end of the year. Duties, including LEPC representation, will be transferred to Deputy Fire Marshal David Stone. There is a general concern for fire and traffic impacts as apartment complexes are being built. Commissioner Barfield - Thanked North Carolina Emergency Management for their support. The Cape Fear Memorial Bridge (CFMB) will be closing for a period which may create some challenges. Additional information and plan details will be sent to LEPC. NCDOT –The Cape Fear Memorial Bridge is an emergency repair. One lane will be closed 7 pm to 5 am while rebuilding the base and walls. Full closure is expected around January 28th/29th. NCDOT will coordinate with law enforcement for traffic control. Additional resources are being brought in to assist with handling single lane and full closures. WFD – Received high water rescue vehicle through grant award. Training for the high-water rescue vehicle will begin next week. The department will be receiving an aluminum landing-style craft at the end of 2024. The Regional Response Team vehicle will be on display at the workshop tomorrow. GE Hitachi Vernova/Aerospace –The site will be transitioning toward separation of business operations between GE Hitachi and GE Aerospace in the 2nd quarter 2024. This will include fire alarm and fire water system changes. GE is working with county fire on the changes. GE Hitachi has purchased a used ambulance for the site. Personnel will be trained, and the ambulance should be in service in February. The ambulance at GE Hitachi assists Novant during response shortages. New SCBAs and an incident command trailer were received and are being in-processed. Committee Updates Executive Committee – Bylaw changes approved by the LEPC at the September 13, 2023, meeting were presented to and accepted by the County Commission. These changes updated name (remove Pender County), updated “appointment” to accept, changed from quorum requirement to members present, and allowed virtual meetings. A final signed copy will be distributed when available. The committee has also been working on conference planning. Emergency Planning/Response – LEPC is looking for members to increase participation in community partner exercises/TTX. Mike Thompson would like to be part of this committee. Community Education/Public Awareness – Approximately 135 agencies report Tier II through ePlan. A draft pamphlet and introduction letter to improve engagement of Tier II reporters for active participation in LEPC were reviewed. Suggested changes include requesting a good colored brochure to send out, change “police” to “law enforcement,” add “non-profits and/community partners and government” to second line of letter, clarify/emphasize the invitation to join the group, add new LEPC logo, add website link/generic email/social media contact info, and add CFR code for bases. Motion to send out pamphlets contingent on changes suggested made by Chris Smith, 2nd by Frank Meyers. Motion unanimously accepted. Debra Nagle offered to send the PDF of the brochure to those on the email list for the conference and to include them in the Tier 2 invoice packages to save postage. Open Forum There was a general discussion regarding the proposed conference agenda presentations. Next Meeting The next LEPC meeting is scheduled for 11:00 AM on March 13, 2024, at the New Hanover County EOC. Forward suggestions for topics or meal sponsorship to the Executive Committee. Adjournment Mark Venters made a motion to adjourn, which was seconded by Andrew Dwyer. The meeting adjourned at 12:02 PM.