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<br /> <br />City of Eugene <br />125 East 8 Avenue, 2 Floor <br />thnd <br />Eugene, Oregon 97401 <br />(541) 682-5010 <br />(541) 682-5414 (FAX) <br /> <br />www.eugene-or.gov <br /> <br />EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER <br />February 13, 2014 <br /> <br />IN THIS EDITION <br /> <br />WINTER STORM RESPONSE MOVES TO RECOVERY PHASE <br />FIREFIGHTERS VOLUNTEER AT OPPORTUNITY VILLAGE <br />COMMUNITY CONVERSATION: “WHY AREN’T THERE MORE BLACK PEOPLE IN OREGON?” <br />NEARBY NATURE STEWARDS URBAN GREENSPACE <br />INTERNATIONAL LIVABILITY EXPERT TO GIVE TWO TALKS IN EUGENE ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 20 <br /> <br />AROUND THE CITY <br /> <br />Winter Storm Response Moves to Recovery Phase <br />The green light at the Public Works Emergency Command Center (ECC) has been turned off, but recovery from the <br />extensive damage caused by the early February snow and ice storm will take months. <br /> <br />Public Works activated its ECC at the Roosevelt Yard at 6 a.m. on Feb. 6, as snow began to fall. Several hours later, a formal <br />declaration of an ice-snow emergency was made. Crews had been deicing city streets for two days before the storm hit, but <br />the amount of snow that fell Feb. 6 and Feb. 7 <br />buried streets in spite of round-the-clock operations <br />by the City’s five plows, seven sanders and two <br />deicing trucks. <br /> <br />The storm was a dynamic event, as snow turned to <br />sleet last Friday evening, and then to freezing rain <br />on Saturday. The response turned from plowing <br />snow to clearing downed trees and limbs that were <br />blocking streets, complicated by power lines <br />tangled up in fallen trees. Most recently, the <br />weather has brought wind and heavy rain. <br />Fortunately, the storm drainage system is working <br />well and only sporadic and localized flooding has <br />been reported, primarily in low-lying portions of <br />city bike paths. <br /> <br />By the numbers, the storm response included the <br />use of 555 cubic yards of traction sand and 5,750 gallons of deicer. Cost of the event is currently around $150,000, with <br />staff time estimated at 4,200 hours (regular and overtime). Both the cost and the staff hours will increase as the recovery <br />phase continues. Approximately 1,000 tree calls have been received to date; call loads peaked last Saturday, and are now in <br />the range of 150 calls a day – about double the normal call volume. <br /> <br />Currently the focus is on clearing blocked roads, abating hazardous trees and removing debris and sand from city streets. <br />Even though the “emergency” is over, the Incident Command System (ICS) structure is being used to manage the ongoing <br />event and recovery operations. Once hazard trees and limbs are on the ground, debris removal teams and sand removal <br />task force teams will follow and work systematically throughout the city. <br /> <br />For more information about the storm event and recovery operations, contact Craig Carnagey, Parks and Open Space <br />director, at craig.t.carnagey@ci.eugene.or.us or 541-682-4930. <br /> <br />EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 <br />February 13, 2014 <br />