A roundtable meeting was held March 12 at the township building for the purposes of discussing the establishment of an emergency plan.

The board members also discussed fire services and hazardous materials cost recovery billing services.

The meeting brought Upper Milford's two fire departments together, as well as the Emmaus ambulance director and the emergency management coordinator.

In attendance were Bill and Bernadine Stahler, director and assistant director of Upper Milford's emergency management team, Daniel Mohr, chairman of the board of supervisors, George DeVault, vice chairman, Robert Sentner, supervisor, and Daniel DeLong, township manager.

It was determined certain fire services and hazardous material cleanups have billable revenue involved. The township is seeking a third party to assist with reviewing the situations recouping the revenue. The third party billing service will charge a 15 percent fee for this service.

With two storms in the area in a year's time, Upper Milford Township has begun asking the question "what do we have to do in the event of an emergency?"

It was discussed certain businesses and schools already have emergency plans in place. The township would like to know these plans so everyone is on the same page. The township's intention is to also work with other communities. The recent tanker incident on Brookside Road is an example of this.

Several goals were discussed including updating the contact list, establishing a staging area and assessing transportation depending upon the emergency. During the storms, residents did not know who to call which further brought home the point that communication is crucial.

Discussion continued on the township needing an official shelter. Mike Nonnemaker, of Emmaus, said the Red Cross needs to approve a facility of this nature and it can involve a lot of requirements. This makes a staging area a better choice.

Martin Milne, pastor of Zionsville Free Church in Zionsville, offered use of his church for a staging area.

Lehigh County offers basic training for citizens for emergency planning.

There will be a follow-up meeting April 9 at the township building.