Story by Annie Wolfe/The Times
Weather is always a concerning factor for those involved in planning for the Fourth of July in Wamego. In years past, storms have caused concern as well as extreme heat. All of which the first responders of Wamego and Pottawatomie County anticipate and plan for.
Thanks to the moderate temperatures for this year’s celebration, Pottawatomie County EMS Director Joel Fager reported to the County Commission Monday they saw fewer heat related illnesses than expected. “We were very lucky with the weather,” said Fager. “We anticipated heat exhaustion and problems with big crowds, and we were very fortunate.”
Use of a new zone map and a new UTV also made for better communication and eased in locating people needing assistance. The map helped divide Wamego into response zones, and coordinated efforts among the various departments involved.
“This was one of the things I thought was neat about this year. Our communication was very well run,” Fager said referring to the map. “When you have a large crowd of people, it’s very hard to find where they (a person in need of medical attention) are at. This was something that helped us with the big crowds. One of the other neat things that we used, that was an advantage, was that extra UTV.”
Fager noted that with borrowing Riley County’s UTV they were able to stage three UTVs in various areas depending on the need. Earlier in the day they focused on the area around the park, with the Wamego Senior Center being used as a First Aid area. Later, the UTVs were moved to the Sports Complex where crowds gathered to watch the fireworks.
“It went very well. I think a lot of people were happy with the outcome of the Fourth of July. I think we had a total of eleven patients this year,” said Fager.
In other department news, EMS has a new Medical Director. Now that the State of Kansas paperwork is complete, Dr. Jennifer Milner, a physician at Wamego Health Center, will officially serve as Medical Director for Pottawatomie County. Commissioners had approved the position at a previous meeting.
Tornado Debris
The county sanitation department has collected more than 1,700 tons of debris from the Westmoreland tornado disaster thus far. Of that, 1,575.83 tons were construction demolition.
“What’s interesting to note is that 1,576 tons construction demolition,” said County Sanitarian Scott Schwinn. “We annually take in an average of 1,200 tons, so that one event … we took in over 300 tons what we normally do (in a year). In just that one event.”
While clean-up efforts have slowed, the county continues to take in debris from the tornado with no charge for disposal. Schwinn also informed the commission that efforts to mow throughout the county have been slow due to all the rain.
Fire Truck Approved
County Commissioners approved the purchase of a F350 4X4 chassis cab for Fire District 3. The new truck will be purchased from Honeyman Ford out of Seneca, who submitted the lowest bid of $50,934.
The rescue truck will replace a 2012 cab and chassis, which will eventually be sold at auction. Fire Chief Scott Vennenberg expects to get a good price at auction. “We’ve been having pretty good luck with that,” he told commissioners. “We sold one last year. I think it sold for 52 (thousand dollars), and our new one cost 54. This will be our last small truck to be updated and then we will be good for a while.”
Human Resources
Whitney Phebus, Human Resources Director, reported a number of job vacancies during her recruitment update to the county commission. Open positions include an Administrative Secretary for the Health Department, two paramedics, a temporary election worker, a seasonal laborer in Public Works, as well as several others. A full list of open positions can be found on the county’s website.
Service Awards
Two county employees received recognition for their service at the County Commission meeting on Monday. Raquel Geddry earned a service award for five years with the County EMS department. Assistant Fire Supervisor Alexander Kinderknecht earned a service award for 15 years with the county.
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