Headed into the coronavirus pandemic, local governments in Morgan and Limestone Counties had a leg up on other governments in having some of what they needed to take on that challenge.
Across the banks of the Tennessee River from the city of Decatur is the Brown’s Ferry Nuclear Plant, owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority. With such a facility nearby, governments in those two counties have always had to be practice disaster preparedness in terms of not just personal protective equipment (PPE) but training as well.
During an appearance on Huntsville radio’s WVNN on Monday, Decatur Mayor Tab Bowling explained how they were able to use those resources as his city was confronted with the disease.
“We’re fortunate … we are close to Brown’s Ferry Nuclear Plant,” Bowling explained. “With that, there’s a lot of PPE that’s been stored up for years at our emergency management agencies — Limestone County, Morgan County, and everyone in that radius where God forbid there would ever be an incident there. So, that gives us a nice stockpile.”
“With that, the experience that comes with our emergency management agencies, and again I would think the same thing with Limestone County — I was on the phone this morning passing texts with Athens Mayor Ronnie Marks,” he added. “Everyone is really doing a great job of communicating. We’re fortunate to have a great resource in the Alabama League of Municipalities.”
Bowling also urged listeners to view the Alabama League of Municipalities website, which offers a page with links to other resources for those grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic.
As for when business might return to usual, Bowling applauded the efforts of hometown State Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur), who has spearheaded an effort to get the ball rolling on normalcy. However, he also cautioned against opening too fast, which would have consequences.
“I know that there are some that are asking those questions, and we had an interesting article in AL(dot)com yesterday from our hometown senator, Arthur Orr, a wonderful state senator,” he said. “And he was talking about trying to do some of those things — that they get the message because we’re doing a wonderful job right now. We just need to listen to the direction of [State Health Officer Dr.] Scott Harris with the Alabama Department of Public Health. They’ll know the time to start phasing us back in.”
@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly and host of Huntsville’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 2-5 p.m. on WVNN.
