HERMANN – A step taken by the City of Hermann to ensure water quality after a single incident of E. Coli contamination highlights the need for better communications between government agencies, says an official of the Herman Fire Company.

Lt. Dane Speckhals of the Hermann Fire Company told the city’s Board of Aldermen during its Sept. 14 session that when the city drained one of its water tanks for cleaning it could have put fire protection in town in jeopardy by potentially reducing water pressure. Speckhals said the Hermann Fire Company, a private volunteer fire-protection agency that serves the city and areas around Hermann, was not made aware of the plan to drain the tower, as part of the steps taken in the wake of the recent single incident of contamination that prompted a week-long boil order for the municipality.

“If we were notified of this at first” the fire company could have made plans for responding to a fire incident in two, he said. “We were forced to be reactive and not proactive,” Speckhals said. He cautioned against continued “lack of communication between agencies.”

But city officials disputed any danger to available water pressure by draining the tower for cleaning, part of the protocol set forth by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) in responding to the contamination incident. City Administrator Patricia Heaney pointed to a report by the city’s consulting engineers that showed adequate water pressure.

Department of Public Works Director Jesse Geltz replied that the city drains its water towers annually to allow state inspections. “That’s part of standard operating procedure,” he said. He added that even with one tower empty, “We had substantial pressure” if a fire incident had taken place.

At the outset of the first regular Board of Aldermen session of the month, Mayor Bruce Cox, a longtime firefighter with the Hermann Fire Company, noted the inconvenience caused to residents and businesses by the prolonged boil order and emphasized that the many tests and steps taken were the direction of the state’s DNR. He said that was “out of our control” and recognized the city employees who “went the extra mile” during the week working to ensure quality of the city’s water supply.

“Right now, we’re in good standing with the DNR,” the mayor said.

Cox also called on residents to sign up for notices of such incidents through the Code Red alert system.

In her report to the board, Heaney noted that while the city has about 1,500 water customers on file, less than 400 received the boil order alert issued through the Code Red program, which the city has had in place for many years. “We will be doing a big push” to get more residents signed up for Code Red alerts, she said.

In other matters, city officials noted that the Hermann Police Department and Gasconade County R-1 School District officials have crafted a plan that will provide a work area for local police in each of the district’s three buildings – elementary, middle and high schools. The work space will allow a policeman an area in which to file reports and do other paperwork.

It also allows the local police agency to have a presence on the R-1 campuses. However, Chief Marlon Walker notes, this is not the same as the Police Department assigning a patrolman to act as a School Resource Officer (SRO) for the district. “We can’t afford to do that,” Walker told the Gasconade County Republican after the BOA meeting, noting the difficulty he had in keeping the Police Department fully staffed. The city police agency, much like the county Sheriff’s Department, is faced with the ongoing task of retaining personnel who might be lured to higher-paying law enforcement positions in neighboring communities and counties.

R-1 Superintendent Geoff Neill at an R-1 board session earlier this summer said the administration is applying for a COPS grant to fund the hiring of a SRO. That person would be a licensed law enforcement officer answerable to the superintendent and school board.

In other matters taken up during the BOA session, the board confirmed the reappointment of Michael Morgan to the city’s Landmarks Commission. That agency monitors work that done to structures within the city’s historical district.

The board also approved the renewal of a Vehicle for Hire license for Brenda Buschmann; approved Caterer’s Permits for Adam Puchta Winery and Old Vine Kitchen Emporium for the Witches & Wine even downtown on Oct. 15; Old Vine Kitchen Emporium for the Hemann Harvest Festival at the Amphitheater on Sept. 26; approved Special Event applications for the Hemann Fire Company for the Witches & Wine event with street closures and the allowance of open containers, Cub Scout Pack 216 for a BBQ fundraiser on the parking of Hermann Lumber Company Oct. 3, St. George School for a 5K Run/Walk on city streets and sidewalks on Oct. 31.