City of Sequim, Clallam Fire District 3 agree to partner more on emergency operations, training

Following what their leaders say is already a strong relationship, officials with the City of Sequim and Clallam County Fire District 3 look to increase their partnership opportunities in dire situations.

Sequim city councilors and fire district commissioners agreed at their respective meetings on Jan. 14 and 15 to a multi-part interlocal agreement to work jointly on emergency management training and operations while sharing some resources such as labor and storage.

“Fire District 3 has always been a fabulous partner,” Sequim Police Chief Sheri Crain said at the Jan. 14 city council meeting.

“This allows us to take that to the next level.”

Fire Chief Ben Andrew agreed in a separate interview, saying the agreement formalizes a lot of what they’ve been discussing and doing for awhile.

“It’s nice to have it nailed in place,” he said.

Crain said there’s been a list of ways to partner for years but the nexus for formalizing an agreement was for emergency management services.

Key points in the contract stipulate the agencies will:

• Provide recruitment, training and retention for Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) and Map Your Neighborhood (MYN)

• Jointly operate the City’s Emergency Operations Center, EOC/Area Command Center, ACC

• Share joint emergency management training costs

• Obtain equipment for the fire district with the city’s Defense Logistics Agency agreement

• Exchang resources on a case-by case basis for items, such as labor, equipment, and materials

The agreement goes into effect Feb. 1 for five years or terminated by either agency, and will be reviewed annually each December.

Local response

Crain said the Emergency Operations Center next to the Sequim Civic Center at the Clallam Transit Center will be a regional resource if an incident like the Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake were to occur, and the agreement allows preparations to share training, establishing roles and recruiting more CERT members in the City of Sequim.

Andrews said one incentive in partnering was using the city’s Emergency Operations Center. He said the fire department has used its training room as an EOC and “it didn’t make sense to update it when we they’ve got one three blocks away.”

Both entities will provide up to 20 personnel trained in an emergency to help operate the EOC, too. Training under the National Incident Management System will allow either organization’s staff to be interchangeable during an emergency, the agreement states.

Part of the agreement includes the city providing a one-time amount up to $10,000 to support CERT members in the city. City staff will review the amount annually for Sequim’s budget.

Fire officials will continue to train CERT members in the city in its recently adopted neighborhood boundaries.

Andrews said the agreement streamlines management of CERT and avoids duplicating management coordination of it in the city.

Crain told city councilors the agreement allows the city’s public service vehicles to be worked on for certain repairs, such as light replacements, at the fire district’s Carlsborg maintenance building on Carlsborg Road rather than going off the Olympic Peninsula for repairs.

The fire district will be compensated for its time, the agreement states, and the maximum amount of payable work is up to $50,000 in a calendar year.

“The maintenance aspect was a no-brainer to us,” Andrews said. “We have a very unique resource with mechanics who are certified for emergency vehicles. They can help the city from time to time.”

He doesn’t anticipate the city turning to the fire district often, but sees it as a convenience for the city.

Crain said the fire district’s Carlsborg maintenance area could house emergency equipment for the Emergency Operations Center, such as a mobile kitchen and/or generator that could serve the region, if needed.

City councilors unanimously approved the interlocal agreement on Jan. 14, with Ted Miller saying he’s “enthusiastically in favor of this proposal” and he wants more interlocal agreements with more agencies of a similar nature to occur.

For more information on the agreement, visit www.sequimwa.gov or call the City of Sequim at 360-683-4139 or Clallam County Fire District 3 at 360-683-4242.

Reach Matthew Nash at mnash@sequimgazette.com.

Starting in February, leaders with the City of Sequim and Clallam County Fire District 3 look to partner more for emergency preparedness training in the city, such as with the Community Emergency Response Team, CERT, seen here in June 2017 at the site formerly occupied by the Sequim Community School. Sequim Gazette file photo by Michael Dashiell