LIBBY — An All-Hazards Incident Command Team is now in place in Lincoln County to support local emergency responders with additional resources for flood mitigation efforts.
“We’ve got damage to roads, bridges, culverts. The state has three teams out today doing damage assessments,” said Western Montana All-Hazards Incident Command Team Public Information Officer Nick Holloway.
Watch: All-Hazards Incident Command Team now in place in Lincoln County:
Holloway said around 10 emergency management officials from across the state have gathered in Libby.
“We’re here for a period of time just to sort of get them over the hump and prepare them for the next phases, which are more recovery phases,” said Holloway.
Holloway said their main goal is to assist local emergency responders and help prepare for potential natural disaster outcomes that could still arise.
His team is keeping a close eye on precipitation forecasts and high wind alerts.
“It’s not forecasted to bring enough precipitation to raise water levels above the flood stage and one of the reasons for that is because the snow level is going to go down low, so a lot of that precipitation inventory will be in the form of snow and hopefully that will stay in the mountains,” said Holloway.
Watch related coverage: Troy town hall addresses historic flooding as incident management teams arrive
Holloway said wind gusts are expected to increase through Wednesday, adding that Lincoln County residents should prepare for potential power outages.
“Make sure you have flashlights, all the kinds of things that you might need for a power outage, charge your devices so that they are freshly charged and full should a power outage occur and just generally up your readiness," said Holloway.
More information and resources from the Lincoln County Emergency Management team can be found here.
