PLAN FOR DERAILMENT…Ed Bohn, pictured, Emergency Management Director Of Paulding County, discussed what local authorities need to do during a train derailment. (PHOTO BY DANIEL COOLEY, STAFF)
By: Daniel Cooley
The Village of Edgerton Council Meeting of April 18 began with the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by a prayer from Mayor Robert Day.
Five of the six council members, Jason Gruver, Chuck Wallace, Leslie VanAusdale, Pam Wampler and Sharon Blinzer were in attendance.
In the first order of business, council approved the meeting minutes from the previous April 4 meeting.
Next, guest speaker Ed Bohn, the emergency management director of Paulding County, discussed the hot topic of train derailments.
Bohn started out by talking about the train derailment in East Palestine, that involved hazardous waste.
Bohn said that this derailment was an anomaly, as only six percent of trains carry hazardous materials.
Plus, Bohn stated that 99% of trains carrying hazardous materials are delivered without leaks, including offloading the materials.
Also, while derailments are certainly concerning, particularly the one in East Palestine, Bohn said that overall, coverage of the East Palestine derailment was overblown, particularly in the number of derailments that the news media mentioned.
While the fact that there are 1,200 derailments each year, 75% of those occur in the railyard, before the trains are released to go en route.
These derailments involve wheels coming off the track. These are successfully repaired before the trains are released.
Just the same, in order to cut down on derailments, the speed of freight trains are regulated to not go over 50 miles per hour and those containing hazardous materials are regulated at 35 miles per hour.
Bohn said that a concern, though, is that the length of trains have increased, since the pandemic. Bohn said that the average length of trains is now 9,800 feet.
Next, Bohn said that if there is a derailment, he discussed the following things that need to take place. First of all, the first responders and village public works are among the first who need to be involved.
Next, the EMA (Emergency Management Association) needs to be contacted as soon as possible, so that they can be there to help assess the situation.
Dispatch and 911 are notified and weather, visibility and the population of the area need to be taken into account.
Once all of the above things are taken into account and the situation has been assessed, a designated public information officer and a joint information center are made available, where this officer can speak to the media and public about what is going on. The situation must be constantly monitored, too.
With EMA involved, a state of emergency can be declared. This enables the area to get needed equipment faster and emergency funds can also be available.
Bohn stated that it is important to know that in a derailment situation, whoever is in charge of the fire department where the derailment occurred, is in charge of the situation.
Local law enforcement becomes a huge key. They handle traffic control, evacuations and if needed, arresting ability, when people defy what they are told to do in the situation.
Local public works is important, because they put together road closures, detours and can bring in resources, like dump trucks and other things that are needed.
Also, once the EMA has been contacted, soon to be involved are several state of Ohio Resources: the governor’s office, the Ohio State Patrol, ODOT, the EPA, Ohio Department of Health, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
Bohn also said that university experts can also be contacted. They may be able to add some input.
Once all this involvement takes place, it is also important for someone locally to document the situation.
Bohn said that the rail company wants to help and can write checks for the situation and for people, but if it’s not documented, you won’t get reimbursed.
Bohn stressed that safety is of the utmost importance. With that in mind, the rail company will bring in cleanup people.
If at all possible, the goal of the rail company is to have a track up and running, within 24 hours. The time to get the area cleaned up, however, can take a lot longer.
After about 45 minutes, Bohn finished, and the regular part of the council meeting continued.
Mayor Day reported that last weekend, the boys scouts cleaned up a mobile home park and the girl scouts cleaned up around the river bend area.
Day said that Arbor Day in the village will be April 28 and May 4 will be a day of prayer. At 10 a.m. on Arbor Day at Edgerton Local Schools, ELS and the village of Edgerton will be planting an ivory silk lilac tree in memory of 1960 graduate Thomas Kitchen.
Organized prayer will take place at the Town Hall Gymnasium, from 12:15 p.m.-12:45 p.m. and local pastors will lead the prayers.
Administrator Dawn Fitzcharles said that she will have something to bring to council at the next meeting, regarding the Edgerton Metals project.
Large trash day was last weekend and Fitzcharles said that the amount of trash picked up will be reported at the next council meeting.
Also, the water tower project is in the final stages before the project can begin. In addition, the Oak Street project is planned for next year.
In the fiscal officer report, Denise Knecht stated that documentation on the credit cards, from March 16-April 15, is ready. A motion was then made to pay the bills.
In the police chief report, Chief Gary Plotts said that the department is issuing warnings and making sure that license plates and registration is up to date.
Plotts also stated that the full-time officers were involved in taser training.
In addition, Plotts asked council to approve taking officer Dana Phipps off probation and onto regular part time. Council approved the request.
Next, council approved the second reading of Ordinance 1119. According to the agenda, this Ordinance establishes and describes “the boundaries of community reinvestment area in the village of Edgerton, designating a housing officer to administer the program and creating a community reinvestment housing council.”
That was followed by council approving Ordinance 1120. This ordinance transfers parcel one for redevelopment.
Council then approved Resolution 2023-007. This Resolution, according to the agenda, establishes “a new fund consistent with the requirements of Ohio Revised Code 5705.09(F).
The next council meeting will be a joint meeting with St. Joseph Township on Tuesday, May 2, at 6:45 p.m. The regular council meeting will take place on May 2, at 7 p.m.
Council then voted to adjourn the meeting.
Dan can be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com
