Emergency responders share countywide resources

Posted: Tue, Oct 1, 2019 9:36 AM

Pictured from Left to Right. Decorah Fire Engineer Zach Kerndt, Lieutenant Steve Nesvik with K9 McCoy and Calmar Fire Chief Aaron Brincks.

Winneshiek County not only has a group of emergency responders across the county, but shared countywide resources as well.

In a day when everything costs a lot of money, one way to try to be fiscally responsible is to avoid duplicating resources. This is especially true in a county of this size. Winneshiek County has several shared resources, including the Decorah Fire Department drone, the Calmar Fire Department drone and the Winneshiek County Sheriff's Office K-9 McCoy.

Said Winneshiek County Emergency Management Coordinator Sean Snyder, "The fire department drones and their pilots have assisted area fire departments, law enforcement organizations, and emergency management agencies on search and rescue, drug task force call-outs, and damage assessment missions. Without this local resource, emergency responders would need to rely on surrounding counties or state-level resources, which could be several hours away."

The Winneshiek County Sheriff's Office K-9 McCoy is a resource that has been used by the Sheriff's Office, Decorah Police Department, Calmar Police Department, and the Iowa State Patrol. "Without the generosity of the public, the Winneshiek County Sheriff's Office would have had a hard time affording such a valuable countywide asset; we cannot thank everyone enough. Sharing resources allows us to be better equipped to respond to emergencies without additional cost to the tax payers," said Sheriff Dan Marx.

Snyder added, "Winneshiek County has some of the best emergency responders in the state and by utilizing shared countywide resource management, getting the appropriate resource to the scene, for me, is as easy as making the request."