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City Council Meeting Minutes April 20, 2021 <br />generators. <br />Council Member Baker inquired about underground utilities and if this would <br />have been beneficial in this event. Mr. Hjorth stated he would advocate for <br />underground utilities in most cases. It would have cut down on some of the <br />impact, but that alone would not solve the problem. Much of the problem was <br />due to electrical appliances, etc. that were plugged in and when the power was <br />restored, there was too much to address. <br />Mr.Taggart stated the situation at the main lift station is that they had a belt <br />and suspender type approach and the cycling on and off is what damaged the <br />system. <br />Council Member Baker inquired about the effluent that was released into the <br />river. He asked if there are plans to capture this or is there another fail proof <br />plan in place. Mr. Taggart addressed this and stated this and given the quantity <br />of the overflow, in this case the length of the event and nature of the outages is <br />what caused this to fail. Mr. Taggart stated there is not a lot that can be done <br />to contain such a large amount of flow, but he did state this did not include a <br />lot of sewage. The flow was mostly fresh water due to running faucets. The City <br />has not received any reports of any environmental effects to the river. Staff will <br />look at back up power supplies as well. <br />Council Member Gonzales expressed his gratitude to all staff. He inquired <br />about the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) and if Council Members are <br />included in those conversations in the EOC. Mr. Stapp stated it is not typical <br />to have Council Members in the EOC. He noted that he sent status updates <br />daily to the Council. <br />Council Member Gonzales inquired about water pressure (PSI) and what <br />would happen if a fire broke out. Mr. Stapp stated there are fire trucks that <br />have water that can be hauled and do not require pumping so a hydrant is not <br />necessary at all times. Mr. Taggart said they were pressurized in many areas so <br />these trucks could be filled quickly if needed. Les Stephens, Fire Chief, stated <br />they do have contingencies in place and can utilize other entities through <br />mutual aid agreements. They typically have about 2000 gallons on hand at any <br />given time. We also have mutual aid agreements with fire departments in the <br />surrounding area who can help provide water. <br />Mayor Pro Tem Derrick thanked staff. She said there were a lot of needs after <br />this event related to burst pipes which led to health concerns. She spoke of the <br />City of San Marcos page 7 <br />