COUNTY EQUIPMENT
HINDERED BY COLD
Osage County Road and Bridge Foreman Ron Kempker had his crew fighting both snow and cold. Unfortunately, the cold kept his equipment from helping fight the snow. There were a few plow trucks on the road as he briefed the commission by phone Tuesday, Feb. 16 but subzero temperatures kept road graders and some other trucks from starting. Osage County wasn’t the only road agency struggling. Commissioners obtained reports that the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) had as many as half of its plow trucks idled. Gasconade County and Jefferson City were both enduring fuel-gel trouble like Kempker. Maries County, on the other hand, was operating at almost full capacity. They had the good fortune of using a supplier which provided a different fuel blend. It worked much better than the fuel available in other jurisdictions. That supplier also treats the Maries County supply when temperatures drop toward zero.
Kempker wanted to try changing fuel filters to get rid of gel already in the fuel lines but Fabick Cat, Columbia, could not deliver the parts. They didn’t have any trucks running, either.
Osage County Presiding Commissioner Darryl Griffin visited the Road and Bridge shed to see what Kempker was going through. He was shown a used fuel filter that was clogged with gel. He suspected the problem was exacerbated by the presence of bio-diesel, commonly mixed into fuel sold in Missouri.
Osage County Eastern District Commissioner John Trenshaw was willing to let all the facts come in before being too critical of anyone involved in the problem. He was, however, certain that fuel was at the center of it.
“It had to be the fuel because every [diesel-fueled] machine was down,” he said. “[Kempker] was there all day Sunday, and they were working then. We have to find out what happened and make sure it never happens again.”
Kempker anticipated trouble and tried to head it off. He checked and started his machinery Sunday, Feb. 14. That was before the snow and cold event came to a head. Trenshaw was therefore unwilling to blame the department’s effort.
He did, though, call attention to the department’s manpower shortage. He suggested the county advertise for part-time help specifically for snow-plowing. Kempker was three people short once he got equipment on the road.
Griffin was also aware of how the crew on hand is overworked. “They ain’t sitting out there playing cards,” he observed. “It was a bad deal and it was unfortunate. Ron did not do this on purpose.”
Trenshaw intends to study fuel blend and service protocol. He’s very interested in that which is deployed by the Maries County fuel supplier. He promised to urge those specifications be included in next year’s fuel bidding. That particular vendor has chosen not to bid Osage County fuel for a few years but their specified blend and actions could be required for vendors who do compete. “We’ve got to take responsibility and find out what went wrong,” said Trenshaw.
“Like Harry Truman said,” added Griffin, “the buck stops here.”
Osage County Western District Commissioner Larry Kliethermes advocated running an online ad thanking farmers who bladed some snow off the rural county roads.
Kliethermes has visited with the landowners on both sides of the Maries River adjacent to CR 611. They will all cooperate with salvage operations to remove the wrecked Pentecostal Bridge. “They all say do what you have to,” said Kliethermes. “Get it out of there.”
SHERIFF
Osage County Sheriff Mike Bonham presented two grant applications for commission signatures. Both are from MoDOT and both are fully funded, with no county matching funds required. They are designed to help pay deputy overtime during coming safety programs. The first for $400 targets the Youth Seat Belt Enforcement Campaign, March 15-31. The second for $1,000 helps with the St. Patrick’s Day Driving While Intoxicated Enforcement Campaign, March 13-20.
Bonham briefed the commission on the Sheriff’s Office performance during the snow event. Predictably, some response times were slower than normal because of the circumstances. He was, however, pleased with his staff’s efforts.
“Our people performed very well,” he said. “We didn’t have anybody call off.”
He recalled a similar event in 2017, early in his first term. Sick leave and equipment malfunction were a bigger problem then.
Bonham is now deploying only 4x4 vehicles in weather like this. He also keeps newer vehicles off the road to limit exposure to damage in accidents. “We’ve had all kinds of trouble with equipment,” he mentioned.
There were some dead batteries and one diesel engine fight gel. He felt, though, it hasn’t affected his force as badly as other departments.
OCHD
Osage County Health Department (OCHD) Administrator Kim Sallin announced her office phone system has added a branch to its automated function. Calls about the COVID-19 vaccination will now be routed to a specific voice mailbox. A staff member will be assigned primarily to clearing those questions. “I took over 100 voice mails on Tuesday (Feb. 16), [all about vaccinations],” she said. “We’re hoping that will help.”
Sallin was planning to administer 400 COVID vaccines Monday, Feb. 22. After that will come a series of clinics dedicated to giving second doses. All shots so far have been given to citizens in the first risk tier. The second tier of patients won’t be eligible to receive the vaccine until April. Those are workers in “critical infrastructure.”
Businesses defined as “essential” will be visited by OCHD personnel. That way their workers won’t have to leave their stations. “I’m hoping to get our [waiting] list down to a minimum [before then],” she said.
MISCELLANEOUS
Cummins Sales and Service, Columbia, was called out to work on the generator at Osage County Administration Building. The automatic switch, activating the machine when a power outage occurs, was frozen.
“They got it working,” said Griffin. “We didn’t want it to fail.”
The commission approved paying bills from Jan. 28 through Feb. 11 as follows by department: 911/EMA ($7,598.08); Assessor ($7,321.74); Building & Grounds ($10,094.08); CARES Act ($2,500); Circuit Clerk ($845.27); Collector ($2,160); County Clerk ($341.21); Elections ($410); Health Department ($90.32); Juvenile and Family Court ($1,319.46); Miscellaneous ($4,921.18); Prosecuting Attorney ($207.11); Public Administration ($1,134.41); Road & Bridge ($25,202.49); and Sheriff-Jail ($16,475.59); and BRO Shawnee Creek ($97,742.44): for a total of $181,867.38.
Commissioners signed outgoing checks.