The Oxford County Local Emergency Planning Committee met on February 25th, 2025 at 9 Western Prom

I.  Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 12:05pm by Cammie Sprague

II. Approval of Minutes

Not enough members were present to form a quorum. Minutes to be approved at next meeting. 

 a. Treasurers Report

Fully up to date Treasurer's Report was reviewed but not enough members were present to vote for approval. 

b. Chemical Spill Report

The committee reviewed the spill reports for the last quarter. There were only 2 reported spills this quarter. 

c.  Training and Events Scheduled for March/April/May 2025

The committee reviewed the training and event schedule. 

III.   Old Business

d.     Hazardous Materials Training Update

The next Hazmat Ops Refresher is scheduled for March 8th, 2025 at Otisfield FD. Information was also reviewed surrounding the process for requesting hazardous materials training. 

Requests for Hazmat Ops training must be submitted to the SERC at least 30 days prior to when the class would be taking place. This means that the requesting agency should begin arrangements with the LEPC at least 45-60 days in advance of the class, to allow time to figure out scheduling with the instructors, and completing the SERC Training Grant Application, to be then signed and returned to the EMA Office. 

Once the request is approved by the SERC, a flyer for the class will be posted for people to sign up. A class must have at least 8 students in attendance for the class to be eligible for reimbursement by the SERC. And there can be no more than 12 students per one instructor. 

Previously, the chief of the requesting agency has submitted an estimate of the number of people from their department expected to attend but there have been several occurrences of far fewer than that number attending a class, and no way of determining who did not attend. On more than one occasion in the past 2 years, this has resulted in attendance falling below the threshold for reimbursement. We will now require that everyone either sign up individually through the EMA Office, or that the Chief submit a list of names of people who have said they plan to attend. 

If a class does not have enough interest, and fewer than 8 people sign up for the class, the class will either have to be cancelled, or the requesting department may opt to pay for the class out of their own budget. The same is true for a class that does not meet the attendance threshold because a person or  persons that had signed up to attend fail to do so. At the discretion of the requesting department, no-call/no-shows may be asked to compensate, in part, for the cost of the class if it cannot be submitted for reimbursement. The instructors will be paid by the county as usual, and then the EMA Office will submit a bill directly to the responsible agency. If a class is needed after the annual LEPC training funds have already been depleted, an agency may still coordinate with us to set up a class with our instructors if they are willing to pay for that class from their own budget. 

e.     Tier 2 Reporting

The deadline for Tier 2 reporting is March 1st, and at this time, a little over half of the County's Tier 2 facilities have submitted their reports and annual fees. 

f. New Member - Shaun St. Germain

Shaun St. Germain's request for LEPC membership has officially been approved by the SERC as of the last SERC Meeting. 

IV. New Business

g. ALICE Training - Pinnacle

ALICE trainer Chancey Libby of the Oxford SO and Maine DEA let the training for the department heads at Pinnacle Healthcare Facilities. The ALICE program teaches them proactive strategies that can be used anytime and anywhere they become unwilling participants in acts of violence. Staff were taught about enhanced lockdown strategies, the importance of alerting others to and incident in plain language, and that sometimes the best option is to evacuate if possible. Due to the ability of most of the residents of the Health Care Facility, there was much discussion on how to secure doors, barricades, and shelter in place. 

h. Location and Timing of Next Meeting - May 27, 2025 at 12pm, Rumford Power

i. Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 12:55pm

Respectfully submitted,

Rachael Leighton

LEPC Secretary