Minutes 12/09/2003 - Laserfiche WebLink

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December 9, 2003 WHEREAS, on the twenty-seventh day of November 2003, the City of Martinsville's Hydroelectric Dam experienced significant mechanical failure met by the standard operating procedures; and WHEREAS, when those procedures could not end the incident, the Electric Department worked to restore control over the generator turbine while area public safety agencies assisted to minimize and mitigate the risk to the general population by closing off the U.S. Route 220 Business; and WHEREAS, the city received assistance in performance of necessary safety precautions from a variety of public safety agencies, including the Martinsville City Police Department, the Martinsville City Sheriff's Office, the Henry County Department of Public Safety, the Henry County Sheriff's Office, the Virginia State Police, Ridgeway Volunteer Fire Department, Martinsville-Henry County Rescue Squad, Ridgeway Volunteer Rescue Squad, Horsepasture Volunteer Rescue Squad, and Stone Ambulance Service; and WHEREAS, city electric department chief Paul Roop and supervisors Dennis Bowles and Mike Frazier pursued the safest of three available options for bringing the incident to a conclusion, receiving assistance outside the plant from a Triangle Electric Company crane; and WHEREAS, when the safest option did not end the incident, Mr. Roop determined to go inside the building and manually restore power to bring the turbine under mechanical control, entering the building with direct assistance from the Ridgeway Volunteer Fire Department under direction of Assistant Chief Earl Emerson, specifically with Captain Sam Brown, Firefighter Greg Riddle and Firefighter Baron Hall entering the building with a charged hose line; and WHEREAS, Mr. Roop's actions and bravery at risk of personal injury effected the solution that brought the incident to a safe conclusion with no injury to staff or rescue personnel; now, therefore BE IT RESOLVED by affirmative vote of the Council of the City of Martinsville, in regular session assembled December 9, 2003, that the City of Martinsville and its residents do hereby express sincere appreciation and gratitude to those city staff members, law enforcement officers, and public safety volunteers who, by putting themselves in harm's way, averted a serious incident without loss of limb or life. Council recognized the following City employees receiving Service Awards from October to December 2003: