* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. 3, 2, 1. [00:00:02] WELL, [Speakers are: Kirk Watson Mayor Bruce Mills Interim Assistant City Manager Ken Snipes Director, Homeland Security and Emergency Management Robert Luckritz Austin/Travis County Emergency Medical Services In Attendance: Stuart Reilly Deputy General Manager, Austin Energy] GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY. AND HELLO, UH, I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR COMING OUT, UH, TODAY TO THIS, WHAT I CONSIDER TO BE ONE OF THE MOST GLORIOUS PLACES IN AUSTIN, TEXAS, AND THAT'S REPUBLIC SQUARE. SO WHILE WE'VE GOT SOME OVERCAST, AND IT'S ACTUALLY KIND OF FEELS A LITTLE BIT COOL RIGHT NOW, THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS IT IS HOT, IT'S VERY HOT, AND WE KNOW THAT THESE, UH, TRIPLE DIGIT TEMPERATURES CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS. AS I'VE SAID BEFORE, WHEN IT GETS HOT, WE SOMETIMES THINK WE CAN PUSH THROUGH THAT HEAT AND WE CAN DO THINGS IN A TYPICAL FASHION, BUT IT'S VERY DANGEROUS AND WE NEED TO KNOW THAT THERE ARE FOUR HEAT ALERT LEVELS. IT STARTS WITH EXCESSIVE HEAT OUTLOOK, FOLLOWED BY HEAT ADVISORY. AND THE THIRD AND FOURTH LEVELS ARE REALLY THE TWO THAT WE MOST WANT EVERYONE TO BE AWARE OF. EXCESSIVE HEAT WATCH AND EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING. AND THERE'S A DIFFERENCE. AND EXCESSIVE HEAT WATCH MEANS THE RISK OF A HEAT WAVE HAS INCREASED, BUT THE OCCURRENCE AND THE TIMING OF THAT HEAT WAVE ARE STILL UNCERTAIN. THE KEY PART OF THAT IS IT IS TIME TO PREPARE FOR THAT HEAT AND EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING MEANS YOU SHOULD TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY, AS I'VE SAID, AND YOU'RE GONNA HEAR IT OVER AND OVER AGAIN. THE TEMPERATURE AND THE HEAT HAVE BECOME DANGEROUS, AND EVERYONE NEEDS TO TAKE NARY PRECAUTIONS TO PROTECT YOURSELF, YOUR FAMILY, YOUR NEIGHBORS, AND YOUR PETS. AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE AND STAY INFORMED. SO NEXT I'M GOING TO PASS THIS ON TO INTERIM ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER BRUCE MILLS, AND HE'S GOING TO SHARE WITH EVERYONE WHAT WE ARE DOING IN RESPONSE TO THE HEAT WAVE. MAYOR, GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU, MAYOR. I'M BRUCE MILLS, INTERIM ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER. FIRST THING I NOTICED IS I DIDN'T DRESS APPROPRIATELY AS THE MAYOR DID SHORTSLEEVE SHIRT ON, LIKE AS WE ALL SHOULD BE WEARING LIGHT CLOTHING AND SHORTS SLEEVE. SO I'LL TAKE THIS JACKET OFF LATER, BUT AS THE MAYOR NOTED, WE ARE EXPERIENCING EXTREME PROLONGED HEAT IN CENTRAL TEXAS REGION TRIGGERING THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO ISSUE. AS THE MAYOR SAID, EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING THROUGH AT LEAST TONIGHT AND MOST LIKELY WILL BE EXTENDED THROUGH THIS WEEKEND. AN EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING IS ISSUED IN THE TEMPERATURE OF THE AIR IS 105 DEGREES, WHICH WE'VE EXPERIENCED WITH THE HEAT INDEX REACHING 113 DEGREES. IN THESE SITUATIONS, THE COMBINATION OF THE TEMPERATURE AND THE HIGH HUMIDITY CAN LEAD TO SERIOUS HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES. AS WE'VE DISCUSSED IN THE PREVIOUS WEEK OR SO, OUR HOMELAND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICE WORKS CLOSELY WITH THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO STAY UP TO DATE ON WEATHER CONDITIONS AND IS CONTINUALLY PREPARING TO KEEP ALL AUSTIN ACTS COOL AND SAFE, WHICH IS WHY WE'RE HERE TO SHOW YOU THIS TODAY. FIRST, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE OUR DIRECTOR OF HOMELAND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, KEN SNIPES, AND HE'S GONNA TALK ABOUT THE MEASURES THAT WE'RE TAKING TO KEEP EVERYONE COOL AND HYDRATED AND BE FOLLOWED BY TRAVIS COUNTY EMS DIRECTOR, UH, CHIEF ROBERT LUCAS. HE'LL ALSO TALK ABOUT HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES, UH, AND SYMPTOMS FOR THAT. SO AGAIN, UH, KEN SNIPES, THANK YOU AND GOOD MORNING DIRECTOR KEN SNIPES WITH HOMELAND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. UH, SUMMER IS HERE AND IT HAS BROUGHT EXTREME HEAT TO CENTRAL TEXAS. THE AUSTIN AREA IS CURRENTLY, AS YOU'VE HEARD UNDER IT, EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. HIGH TEMPERATURES BRING THE RISK OF ELEVATED HEAT ILLNESS TO OUR AUSTIN COMMUNITY. ACCORDING TO THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION, AN AVERAGE OF 700 PEOPLE DIE EACH YEAR IN THE UNITED STATES FROM HEAT ILLNESS, AND MOST OF THOSE ILLNESSES COULD BE PREVENTED. TO DATE, ABOUT 13 PEOPLE HAVE DIED ACROSS THE STATE OF TEXAS DUE TO HEAT ILLNESS THIS YEAR. UM, COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE ELDERLY MEDICALLY COMPROMISED, WHO WORK OR SPEND TIME OUTSIDE OR WHO ARE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS ARE ESPECIALLY VULNERABLE. NO HEAT RELATED DEATHS HAVE REPORTED HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN AUSTIN THIS YEAR. AND THAT'S WHY WE ARE HERE TODAY TO SHARE WITH YOU HOW WE MIGHT GO ABOUT PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITY AND HELPING PEOPLE UNDERSTAND HOW THEY PREVENT THEMSELVES FROM BECOMING VICTIMS ASSOCIATED WITH HEAT ILLNESS. AT HOMELAND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, WE ARE TAKING ACTION TO HELP KEEP OUR COMMUNITY SAFE. UH, TODAY AT REPUBLIC PARK, YOU SEE BEHIND US, WE HAVE A SET OF MISSING TENTS, UH, DESIGNED TO, UH, HELP KEEP PEOPLE COOL, TO GIVE THEM AN ABILITY TO, UH, HAVE A REPRIEVE FROM THE HEAT. THIS IS A PILOT THAT WE ARE UNDERTAKING TO STUDY [00:05:01] AND UNDERSTAND HOW THIS MIGHT BE, UH, AN APPARATUS THAT WE, UH, COULD USE ACROSS THE CITY IN THE FUTURE. COOLING CENTERS. THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S RECREATION CENTERS AND LIBRARIES ARE AVAILABLE AS COOLING CENTERS. THESE COOLING CENTERS SERVE ALSO AS A REPRIEVE FROM THE HEAT DURING EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNINGS. THE HOURS OF THESE FACILITIES, UH, ARE EXTENDED. UH, YOU CAN FIND OUT MORE@AUSTINTEXAS.GOV ALERTS, UH, OR ALSO WE ADVISE YOU TO CHECK IN@READYCENTRALTEXAS.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW YOU CAN PROTECT YOURSELF AND HOW TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPACTS OF HEAT ILLNESS AND HOW TO PREVENT IT. AND WITH THAT, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO CHIEF LUCKERT WITH EMS. THANK YOU KEN. CHIEF ROBERT LUCRE, UH, AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMS. UH, FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT I STRESS THE SERIOUSNESS OF THIS, UH, SITUATION THAT WE'RE IN. UM, ALTHOUGH IT DOES FEEL VERY NICE OUT RIGHT NOW, IT IS GOING TO GET EXTREMELY HOT AS WE MOVE FORWARD. AND AS WE ALL KNOW, AND I CANNOT EMPHASIZE ENOUGH, HOW IMPORTANT IT'S FOR US TO PAY ATTENTION TO OURSELVES AND TAKE CARE OF OURSELVES. SINCE APRIL 1ST, WE'VE HAD 422 INCIDENTS IDENTIFIED AS HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES. A QUARTER OF THOSE HAVE WERE IN JULY, AND HALF OF THOSE WERE IN JUNE. DURING THE MONTH OF JUNE, WE HAD A, WE SET AN ALL TIME RECORD FOR HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES, ALMOST DOUBLE WHAT WE EXPERIENCED LAST YEAR. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU, THAT YOU IDENTIFY AND RECOGNIZE THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF HEAT EXHAUSTION AND HEAT STROKE. EVERYONE SHOULD BE SURE TO LEARN THOSE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS. FIRST AND FOREMOST, IF YOU'RE EXPERIENCING NAUSEA, LETHARGY, TIREDNESS, YANK YOURSELF, RELAX, STEP OUTTA THE HEAT, FIND A COOL PLACE TO REST UNTIL YOU'RE IN A BETTER PLACE. IF YOU STOP SWEATING OR IF YOU SEE SOMEONE WHO IS CONFUSED AND UNABLE TO CONTROL THEMSELVES, CALL ON NINE ONE ONE IMMEDIATELY AND WE'LL RESPOND. ACT QUICKLY. REMEMBER THESE THREE WORDS. IF SOMEONE HAS THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF HEAT STROKE, MOVE THEM, COOL THEM AND CALL 9 1 1. IT'S ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE RECOGNIZE THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT HAVE MORE EXPOSURE TO, UH, HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES. PATIENTS WITH COMPACT, COMPLEX, OR CHRONIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS, THE VERY YOUNG OR THE VERY OLD, ARE AT HIGH RISK. THEY CANNOT REGULATE THEIR TEMPERATURES IN THE SAME WAY THAT YOU AND I CAN. PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK ON YOUR NEIGHBORS, ESPECIALLY THE ELDERLY OR THOSE WITH YOUNG CHILDREN. CHILDREN ARE OFTEN OVEREXERT THEMSELVES AND MAY NOT NOTICE THAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING A HEAT-RELATED ILLNESS. SPEAKING OF CHILDREN, REMEMBER, CHECK YOUR CARS, VEHICLES HEAT UP VERY FAST. IF YOU'RE OUT, BE SURE TO PUT SOMETHING IN YOUR BACKSEAT SO THAT YOU IDENTIFY THE NEED TO BE ABLE TO GO BACK AND CHECK FOR YOUR CHILD. PUT YOUR CELL PHONE, PUT YOUR PURSE, PUT SOMETHING BACK THERE. WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY DEATH IN AUSTIN WITH CHILDREN IN THE BACK SEAT THIS YEAR, BUT WE WANNA KEEP IT THAT WAY. SO PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK YOUR BACK SEAT. AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMS IS ALWAYS READY. WE HAVE THE TOOLS TO BE ABLE TO TREAT YOU. SO PLEASE, IF YOU SEE SOMEONE WHO IS EXPERIENCING HEAT RELATED ILLNESS, CALL US. HEAT RELATED ILLNESSES ARE ON THE TOP OF OUR MINDS RIGHT NOW. ALL OF OUR INDIVIDUALS ARE TRAINED TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY AND TREAT THOSE TYPES OF ILLNESSES. IF WE DO RESPOND, IF YOU CALL US, PLEASE MENTION IF SOMEONE HAS HAD A SIGNIFICANT HEAT EXPOSURE. AND REMEMBER THAT OUR MEDICS ARE OUT THERE WORKING IN THE THE SAME CONDITIONS. THE CREWS ARE DOING AN INCREDIBLE JOB BEING ABLE TO MITIGATE THE INCREASE IN CALL VOLUME THAT WE'VE SEEN. WE'RE WORKING TO TAKE CARE OF THEM, TAKE CARE OF THEM, AND TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE IS TAKING CARE OF ONE ANOTHER. LIKE OUR CREW MEMBERS THAT ARE OUT THERE, MANY OTHER INDIVIDUALS ARE WORKING OUTDOORS. IF YOU'RE AN OUTDOOR WORKER, PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE TAKING PLENTY OF BREAKS AND MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE STAYING HYDRATED. IF YOU NEED A BREAK, TAKE A BREAK. AND FINALLY, JUST REMEMBER TO TAKE ADEQUATE PRECAUTIONS. IF YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT GOING OUTSIDE TODAY, IF YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT DOING WORK OUTSIDE, PLEASE RECONSIDER. IS THERE A BETTER TIME? IS THERE A BETTER DAY? AND IF YOU DO NEED TO GO OUTSIDE TO DO WORK, CONSIDER DOING IT EARLY IN THE MORNING OR LATER IN THE EVENING. IF YOU DO GO OUTSIDE DURING THE DAY, BE SURE TO PREPARE. BE SURE TO PRE HYDRATE, USE SUNSCREEN, DRINK LOTS OF WATER, WEAR LIGHT LOOSE CLOTHING, TAKE FREQUENT BREAKS, AND AGAIN, TRY TO LIMIT YOUR ACTIVITIES TO THE EARLY MORNING OR EVENING. WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT BACK OVER TO THE MAYOR. THANK YOU. THANKS CHIEF. UM, AND WE'LL OPEN IT UP FOR A FEW, UH, QUESTIONS IF ANYBODY'S GOT QUESTIONS. WE ALSO HAVE WITH US TODAY, STEWART RILEY, THE DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER OF AUSTIN ENERGY. IF ANYBODY HAS ANY QUESTIONS RELATED TO, UH, ENERGY OR THE GRID OR ANYTHING OF THAT NATURE, ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? WELL, I'M GONNA LET, WILL YOU ADDRESS HOW, HOW HE'S ASKED, DO WE SEE, UH, THOSE LIVING, HOMELESS, MOVING INTO DIFFERENT PLACES IN THE CITY BECAUSE OF HEAT? AND I'M GOING TO ASK [00:10:01] HIM TO ADDRESS THAT, BUT I'M ALSO GOING TO ASK HIM TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE THINGS WE'RE DOING SO THAT, SO THAT WE KNOW WHERE FOLKS ARE AND WE CAN ADDRESS THEIR NEEDS. THANK YOU. UH, GREAT QUESTION. UH, SO I, I CAN'T SPEAK SPECIFICALLY TO WHETHER OR NOT WE'RE SEEING PEOPLE MOVING AROUND, BUT I WILL TELL YOU THAT WE ARE TAKING INITIATIVES TO CONNECT WITH THEM WHERE THEY ARE. UH, TWO WEEKS AGO, FOR EXAMPLE, WE, WE TOOK A TEAM OF FOLKS OUT, UH, TO EIGHT, UH, HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT SITES, AND WE PROVIDED THEM WITH, UH, BOTTLED WATER, UH, WHICH WAS MUCH APPRECIATED BY THOSE FOLKS. UH, ALSO YOU'LL SEE, UH, THAT WE'RE PILOTING THE EFFORT HERE BEHIND US WHERE WE HAVE THE COOLING AND MISTING TENTS AND ALSO COLD WATER AGAIN. SO THAT WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE TO ANYBODY IN NEED. UH, AND SO OUR HOMELESS POPULATION CAN CERTAINLY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT. SO THE QUESTION IS, UH, WHAT ARE WE SAYING, UH, TO THE HOMELESS POPULATION IN TERMS OF WHAT OPTIONS THEY MAY HAVE RELATED TO THE HEAT? UH, AND SO WHAT I WOULD SAY IS OUR HOMELESS OUTREACH PROVIDERS, UH, AS THEY GO OUT, UH, AND DO THEIR DAILY WORK, THEY'RE CONNECTING WITH PEOPLE IN THE HOMELESS POPULATION AND THEY'RE SHARING WITH THEM, UH, THE OPPORTUNITIES TO GET WATER. THEY'RE ACTUALLY TAKING WATER OUT AS WELL WHEN THEY GO OUT. UH, AND AS WE'VE STARTED THIS PILOT HERE TODAY, WE'LL MAKE THEM AWARE OF THAT AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES, UH, THAT ARE TO COME. THANKS. THE ONLY THING I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT ABOUT WHAT WE JUST SAID IS THE PILOT PROJECT ON THESE MISTERS, UH, IS FOR EVERYBODY. UH, IF YOU'RE IN DOWNTOWN, IF YOU'RE WALKING, UH, THROUGH THE DOWNTOWN, YOU FEEL YOU, YOU FEEL YOURSELF GETTING A LITTLE HOT. UH, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS. AND, AND THIS HAS BEEN POINTED OUT, WE'RE STUDYING THIS AS WELL BECAUSE WE WANT TO SEE WHETHER OR NOT IT'S BEING USED AND THE, AND WHAT IT'S, THE RESULTS OF IT BEING USED. BECAUSE WE MAY BE DOING THIS IN OTHER PARTS OF DOWNTOWN AND OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY TO TRY TO MEET THOSE KINDS OF NEEDS. ANOTHER QUESTION, I'M SORRY, I CAN'T HEAR YOU. HOW LONG, HOW LONG ARE THEY GONNA BE HERE? HOW LONG WILL THE MISSING TENS BE HERE? WHAT WE ANTICIPATE NOW IS, UH, ANY OF THE DAYS THAT WE HAVE, UH, EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNINGS, WE'RE GONNA DEPLOY THE, THE RESOURCES. UH, THIS IS A PILOT, SO THIS IS THE FIRST LOCATION. UH, AND RIGHT NOW WE DON'T KNOW, UH, HOW FAR OR HOW WIDE WE WILL SPREAD THE PROJECT. UH, BUT FOR NOW, THE PLAN IS TO, UH, DEPLOY THEM WHEN WE HAVE EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNINGS. THEY WILL NOT, THEY WILL BE, UH, HERE, UH, TODAY UNTIL 6:00 PM. OTHER QUESTIONS? OTHER THOUGHTS? THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING OUT HERE. AND THANK YOU FOR THE ROLE YOU'RE PLAYING IN LETTING PEOPLE KNOW IT IS VERY HOT. PLEASE, EVERYONE PAY ATTENTION TO THAT. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR BODIES. CHECK ON YOUR NEIGHBORS, UH, PARTICULARLY YOUR ELDERLY NEIGHBORS OR NEIGHBORS THAT YOU THINK MIGHT NEED SOME ASSISTANCE. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR CHILDREN. MAKE SURE THAT YOU DON'T LOCK, UH, CHILDREN OR DOGS IN YOUR CAR. AS YOU MIGHT LEAVE, AS WAS POINTED OUT, DO SOMETHING THAT WILL REMIND YOU AND, UM, STAY, STAY AS COOL AS YOU CAN BECAUSE THIS IS A DA. THIS IS IN FACT A DANGEROUS TIME AND THAT'S WHY WE WANT TO GIVE, GET THESE WARNINGS OUT. THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING HERE. GOOD. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.