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AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY

Meeting Date:

11/12/2024

Meeting Type:

Work Session

Staff Contact/Dept:

Niel Laudati/City Manager's Office

S P R I N G F I E L D
C I T Y C O U N C I L

Staff Phone No:

Estimated Time:

20 Minutes

Council Goals:

Strengthen Public Safety by Leveraging Partnerships and Resources

ITEM TITLE:

Springfield Emergency Response Application (SERA) City Council Overview.

ACTION REQUESTED:

Staff will present a walk-through of the SERA application, a tool for visualizing storm-related impacts at the ward and neighborhood level. During the update, staff will provide Springfield-specific scenarios and request feedback and questions from Council.

ISSUE STATEMENT:

The January 2024 ice storm caused widespread power outages, road closures and damage to property throughout the City. Our teams, including: Operations, Police, Fire, City Hall, staff at the Emergency Operations Center and our City Councilors, worked diligently to provide information and services to our community members during an unprecedented event. Our community provided feedback and suggestions during the days and weeks that followed. Feedback from our community confirmed that different neighborhoods of Springfield experienced the storm and communications differently, based on location, neighborhood accessibility, and a number of additional factors. A one-size fits all communication approach does not work when the landscape of Springfield is so diverse.

SERA is a direct response to this community feedback and is an effort to provide increased information on specific neighborhoods in Springfield, allowing us to better respond to our community members during a large-scale emergency. Additionally, SERA provides our Emergency Operations Center with specific information on neighborhood demographics, vulnerabilities and community needs to empower a more complete decision-making process and enhance resilience strategies.

DISCUSSION/FINANCIAL IMPACT:

SERA was developed in-house by City Staff in direct response to feedback received from our City Council, Springfield community members, staff, elected officials and local, state and federal organizations.
The application is designed to activate in tandem with the City's Emergency Operations Center. It is a living and ever-changing app will be updated with every event, offering more information as we move forward.
There is no financial ask associated with this item.