Wasatch County Council received an update on county emergency protocols on Wednesday.
Wasatch County Emergency Manager Jeremy Hales spoke to the Wasatch County Council to discuss the county governments preparations for any emergency the local government might face.
“We are trying to determine in the event we have an emergency—not just for COVID-19 but any emergency, an earthquake, or something that may disrupt the overall function of the County government—what do we minimally need to maintain and function,” Hales continued. “There's a lot of great preparation by many of our departments within the County that are prepared. As far as funding, as far as keeping things clean, doesn't matter what it is, we need to have that preparation. PPE, or personal protective equipment, is going to become very critical. A lot of our departments have it, but we cannot buy our way out of this. We need to be resourceful and be proactive in what we're doing.”
Hales notes that planning has included identifying vital services and encouraging meetings to be held virtually. Communication and alternate facilities were also a part of the conversation around protocol in an emergency scenario.
“That's what we're doing on a County level, is to try to prepare people to think outside the box,” Hales said. “I'm also going to encourage you to do that same thing. What do we need to do as a council government, who's going to maintain that spot? If we lose some people and then they have to get quarantined, or they're not able to make it back in the event of a disaster. If I was in Salt Lake today who's going to take my spot as emergency manager and answer to that if I'm stuck in Salt Lake City and I can't make it up the highway.”
Hales added that he thinks preparation has gone well as they’ve quickly filled in any gaps.
