​​The Poplar Bluff community and leaders were praised Thursday for the initiative and foresight that went into constructing a facility that will serve as an Emergency Operations Center for Butler County.
The EOC was dedicated during a ceremony with city, county and state officials at the new Poplar Bluff Police Department at 911 Shelby Road. Work is ongoing to move in police services, most of which are expected to be operational there in the next two weeks.
“SEMA really values what you all are doing,” said Jeff Briggs, earthquake program manager for the State Emergency Management Agency. “As with every community, there are always way more needs than there are resources to meet them. It’s awfully easy to just put out the fires, but somebody said, ‘We’ve got to plan for a rainy day and we’ve got to have a facility like this.’
“This took money. It took commitment, and I think it shows a lot of leadership, a lot of foresight... It’s only a matter of time before a resource like this pays dividends.”
Briggs gave the November magnitude 4.0 earthquake that shook the region as an example, explaining local officials reported the 911 system was overwhelmed with phone calls from concerned residents.
“That’s just a very small sampling of why we need a facility like this, (so) we can improve our capabilities and we get everybody together to share resources and talk about how to respond,” Briggs said. “We certainly know there are going to be plenty of winter storms, flooding and all the rest.”
Butler County EMA Director Robbie Myers thanked everyone who made the EOC possible, as well as the partners that help in responding to emergencies. That included United Gospel Rescue Mission Rev. Greg Kirk, former EMA director Jeff Shawan, members of SEMA, Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center, Butler County Health Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Sen. Josh Hawley, Sen. Jason Smith, the city of Poplar Bluff and the Daily American Republic.
“That’s why emergency management works here in Poplar Bluff, our partners,” said Myers. “We’re happy to be partners in protecting and keeping our community safe.”
The EOC will serve as the base for everything from conference calls with the National Weather Service during severe weather, to trainings and planning meetings, and responses to other major disasters, Myers said.
“There’s nothing like being in the same room, eye-to-eye with our partners and getting things done,” he said.
A lot of hard work and dedication went into the design of the EOC and police department, said Mike McClain, interim police chief.
“With the vision of what I now see in front of me, this is exactly what collectively we wanted,” McClain said, speaking to about 30 emergency response partners who gathered for the dedication and a meeting that followed.
After the dedication, emergency partners heard from a representative of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, who participated via video to discuss earthquakes.
The group also received an overview of an April 4, 2024, full-scale earthquake exercise that will be hosted by Poplar Bluff for the New Madrid Seismic Zone.