On Friday, Feb. 14. Archuleta County offices were closed due to a winter storm hitting the area that caused widespread power outages. Many businesses were also closed for the day, as was Archuleta School District (ASD).
The Archuleta County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) discussed the incident and its plans to standardize an inclement weather policy so that all county offices are under the same direction for the possibility of severe weather events.
County Manager Jack Harper initiated the conversation, noting that “what we have in writing is not necessarily what’s been in practice.”
He explained that previous practices included having county employees call a hotline number with a voicemail from the county manager providing direction, a group text message with all county directors and officials to relay messages and even the use of Nixle (a community emergency notification system).
“I do want to be careful, though, with using Nixle ... that’s really for emergencies,” Harper said.
He also noted that the county’s attempts to “sync up” with ASD for two-hour delays “with the county not canceling if the school district cancels.”
According to La Plata Electric Association, power was restored for 100 percent of members in Archuleta County after 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 14, with initial outages being reported at approximately 6:30 a.m. the same day.
Harper also explained that he is in a group text message with Public Works Director Mike Torres and ASD Superintendent Rick Holt, and that during the school year, “they try to have a decision roughly around 4 a.m,” noting that crews were out plowing roads by 3:30 a.m. on Feb. 14.
Commissioner Warren Brown interjected saying, “we need a plan and we need to follow it,” adding that the plan the county has been following is “disjointed at best.”
Brown noted that the blame does not fall on one specific individual, instead describing the situation as a “collective breakdown in communication.”
Brown also indicated that he’s “not a fan” of closing public offices at the taxpayer’s expense.
“I’m not sure that we should be funding … delays,” he said, acknowledging that unique circumstances do come up, but, “a foot of snow does not constitute in my mind a closure.”
Brown also acknowledged there are safety concerns with inclement weather events, noting that accidents can happen on “any road surface.”
Brown added that he wants to see continuity with communication to employees about delays or closure so that a situation where only some employees are notified does not occur.
Commissioner Veronica Medina mentioned that Feb. 14 was a unique situation and she was unable to recall a time recently where power was out for that long.
She noted that this is a “great opportunity” for the county to put some procedures in place addressing inclement weather policies.
“We definitely do need to have some type of plan,” she said, noting that it does not necessarily need to involve closing down all county offices.
Harper indicated that he would communicate and work with county department leaders to come up “with alternative communication standards.”
clayton@pagosasun.com
