Anniston Star
March 8, 2003

Calhoun County Commission approves contract for protective equipment

By Nathan Solheim
Star Staff Writer
03-08-2003

The Calhoun County Commission has approved the contract that will provide various protective devices to Calhoun County residents for use in case of an accident at the Anniston Army Depot's chemical weapons stockpile.

Commissioners agreed Friday to a $14 million contract with Centech, Inc., after weeks of negotiations. The action was taken in a commission meeting that had been in recess since Feb. 27.

Under the terms of the contract, Centech now has 30 days to begin distributing protective hoods, shelter-in-place kits and recirculation filters, which purify air.

"We're ready to move to the next phase and get this equipment into the hands of the people of Calhoun County," said DeLois Champ, an official with the Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency.

The Calhoun County Commission chose Centech as the contractor for the Citizen's Protection Program in early February, but held off on signing the contract until federal officials came up with the remaining $5 million in funds for the program. The commission delayed the contract again in late February to complete last-minute negotiations with Centech.

"We're satisfied with the contract," said Dr. Barry Cox, a JSU professor who helped negotiate the deal. "We didn't object to taking a few extra days to make sure it was correct."

The commission has agreed to purchase 20,000 recirculation filters at a cost of $7,319,446. The contract also commits the county to purchasing 40,000 shelter-in-place kits costing $893,600.

Centech will provide three types of protective hoods, ranging from infant models to adult models. The commission purchased 20,000 adult hoods costing $4.5 million, 2,000 children's hoods costing $450,000, and 750 infant hoods costing $168,750.

The contract also calls for creation of a database to track the population and to catalog what protective devices they receive. That cost $123,600.

Calhoun County Commission Chairman James A. "Pappy" Dunn said the commission's efforts protect citizens.

"This is much-awaited news, and we're appreciative of all the leg work that went into this," Dunn said. "You can rest assured that we're going to do what we can to protect the people."

The contract also outlines the order in which protective devices will be distributed.

Citizens living closest to the depot will get the appropriate protective devices first and distribution will work outward to those farthest from the depot.

People living in the Pink Zone will receive a hood, a recirculation filter and a shelter-in-place kit.

Those in the Immediate Response Zone will receive a recirculation filter and a shelter-in-place kit.

Those in the Protective Action Zones will receive a shelter-in-place kit.

Centech also will oversee medical evaluations for residents who receive protective hoods, and public information campaigns to inform residents what equipment they will receive.

Now, emergency management and county officials will turn toward other preparedness measures such as overpressurizing more schools and securing protective measures for people with mental or physical disabilities.

"It's not the end of the journey yet," said County Administrator Ken Joiner. "It certainly is a relief to get to this point. We hope the distribution process goes smoothly."