Council extends emergency declaration of disaster
Last night, the Coppell City Council discussed the severe winter weather from last week, the impacts it has had on the city, and how to prepare in the event of another natural disaster. Coppell City Council meetings are held virtually on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:30 p.m.
February 25, 2021
Tuesday evening, the Coppell City Council moved to extend an Emergency Declaration of Local Disaster and a State of Emergency to March 25 due to the severe winter weather Coppell experienced last week.
During last week’s natural disaster, the City of Coppell and council were able to get a quick turnaround for the declaration that would help ensure safety. Mayor Karen Hunt signed it last Thursday due to it’s emergency status, and brought it to the council last night. The city manager report contained information about how the different departments were able to specialize in their fields and cover the needs of the people by working together.
Fire Chief Kevin Richardson and Police Chief Danny Barton gave a report on their departments’ actions during the snowstorm. Firemen took care of shortage of water by filling fire hydrant’s tenders with water, the police department covered traffic accidents from driving on icy roads and both ensured the safety of the general public.
“I’m extremely proud not only of the fire department but all city departments,” Richardson said. “These departments were all part of [the solution]. It was a combined effort from planning exercises, training and preparation for us to fill the roles of the emergency operation center’s level of confidence. It’s something we can all be proud of.”
City Engineer/Director Public Works Kent Collins took on the responsibility of frozen, leaking and bursting pipes as well as the rolling power outages. Director Community Development Mindi Hurley is working and communicating with local businesses/residents to encourage them to fill out a survey that could help qualify Coppell for additional federal disaster relief funding from FEMA. Chief Communications Strategist Hannah Cook took to social media to spread awareness of how to deal with certain struggles like how to shut off your water at your water meter.
Feb. 17 was the department’s busiest day. By sharing how their resources were strained at the city council meeting, these departments and officials were able to thank each other for how they each handled the situation.
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