County councillors here learned Oct. 29 there are plans to ensure continuity of services if there is a major outbreak of H1N1 flu.
They also learned from Warden Joanne Ross-Zuj the county, like most communities, did not receive the expected amounts of vaccine to inoculate people from the H1N1 flu.
She warned there are priorities for those who receive the first shots – so the most vulnerable get them first.
The county’s emergency services manager Linda Dickson explained there are a number of areas where governments must be prepared if there is a pandemic. In a mild situation, up to 10% of county staff might miss work for various reasons. In a severe one, up to half of county employees might not make it into work.
She said each member municipality must develop a plan for such problems.
She said education is needed to help people reduce the chances of getting the flu, and municipalities will have to manage with illness in the workforce, identify essential services, and ensure essential services are delivered.
Essential areas include health, safety, and welfare, a possible temporary halting of services or a suspension of them, and some might stop for even longer periods.
Dickson said road clearing will be essential in winter, but not as big an issue in summer. Contract arrangements might have to be put into place.
Dickson said the human resources department will have to bring its contact lists up to date and may have to provide emergency training if a department has to redeploy staff.
She said there has to be continuity in decision making at government levels. That means subcommittees if councillors are off sick, and designated back-ups for positions such as Chief Administrative Officer. If a key staff member is missing, the county must answer the question “Who is going to come in and assume that role.”
Dickson said the warden, CAO, communications officer, and the emergency information planner will receive special training, and there has to be plans for services for residential care and for care of people at Wellington Terrace.
She said social services must make provisions for service delivery and building maintenance, and someone must make sure payroll is delivered. Social services will have a “huge role” in maintaining income levels for people on Employment Insurance and welfare, and in emergency management it might have to work through the Red Cross.
She said someone has to ensure there is waste collection and maintenance funds are available. Someone will have to ensure pension cheques are mailed to those who need them.
Road designations
Councillor Bob Wilson said he is unhappy with the civic addressing situation. “There is too many duplications in street names,” he said.
He said the clerks’ departments in many municipalities have ignored that problem.
“I’ve kind of given up.”
Dickson said Centre Wellington is “looking at it.” The problem is it has four rural municipalities that were part of the merger with Elora and Fergus, leaving a lot of sideroads and Concessions Roads with the same numbers.
Dickson said Erin has gone through a renaming of its roads, and she agreed, “It’s not easy.”
But Wilson said northern Wellington and Guelph-Eramosa Townships have the same problems.
“There’s more than one 1st Line.”
He agreed Centre Wellington is working on the issue, but, “The 5th line of Centre Wellington does not exist.” (It would be 5th line of West Garafraxa, or Pilkington, or Nichol, or Eramosa until changes are made.)
Warden Joanne Ross-Zuj said Centre Wellington started the renaming process a year ago, but “It takes a long time. It’s a problem.”
Councillor Jean Innes is concerned about care in emergency areas of the community. She wanted to know what will happen if land lines crash (for phone and internet service) and added that if hydro goes out, people will need generators just “to support the web system.”
Dickson agreed that is a problem, and it part of “our ongoing education.
Ross-Zuj said she has been in “regular conversations with Public Health, and has checked where inoculation clinics have been set up. Then, she said this area did not receive the amount of vaccine it was expecting.
Later in the meeting, council considered a recommendation from its administration committee that the procedural bylaw be amended to designate who takes over if the warden is unable to act.
The first choice is the chairman of the administration, finance, and personnel committee (John Green). After that, the acting warden would be:
– immediate past warden, if on council (Green), and, if he is unable;
– chairman of the Wellington County Police Services Board (Lynda White), and if she is unable;
– chairman of the roads committee (Rod Finnie).
Also, the authority to appoint an acting CAO is delegated to the CAO; and the purchasing bylaw spending limits will be extended to the CAO and department heads during times of emergency and pandemic.
Maieron said in major emergencies, the county should get as many of the warden’s advisory committee members together as it can and “do the best you can.” The committee chairmen make up that committee.
