As Mayor Lightfoot blames the Federal Government and in particular President Trump for lack of a response plan to the COVID 19 Public Health Disaster consider the following.
The City of Chicago following the deadly SARS pandemic developed a working and written Personal Protection Equipment Plan for all emergency responders in the event of a deadly pandemic. This plan was developed and let by the OEMC and the Chicago Department of Public Health. Estimates of PPE for employees tasked to work during a deadly pandemic were projected. The plan delineated the purchasing and warehousing of critical PPE for the City Workforce Including N95 Respirators. The plan noted where the PPE would be procured, stored and rolled out in advance of a deadly pandemic such as the one taking place now. The plan also delineated vendor management and allegedly outline contracts with vendors in the event of an emergency that would be required by a written legal agreement to provide PPE to the City as a priority customer.
Working groups would convene at the OEMC to update this citywide plan. It is worthy to note, the current Mayor served in Executive Leadership roles at the OEMC and allegedly would have known and participated in the updates and execution of such plans including the necessity to procure PPE in the advance of a Pandemic such as the SARS Pandemic and associated Challenges the City faced related to that event and public health disaster and more recently the H1N1 citywide response led by the Chicago Department of Public Health and the OEMC.
So as City employees are forced to provide services the guidance they have received is real-time from the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention-a Federal Agency that falls under the Executive Leadership of the President that the Mayor continues to attack for his shortcomings in her minds- eye related to the response and allocation of material to the city. Yet the city also is required to develop and have plans that are tested in drills and when necessary based on the results of the drills –take corrective action. Documentation of such drills and planning are required components of the large Federal Grants that the city receives from the Federal Government under the Direction ultimately of the President of the United States. Did the City provide and document shortcomings not only now but under prior administrations including those of Obama and his predecessor?
Worker Safety is the most important aspect of any organization and the City of Chicago appears to have allegedly failed its workforce by failing to have a delineation of workforce risk in the event of a deadly pandemic and corresponding countermeasures in an executable and viable plan. The Mayor has 1000 exempt jobs under her control. She can designate as many people under those exempt titles as she wants to develop viable emergency response plans including a PPE Plan in the event of a disaster.
It is likely following the deaths of city employees that lawsuits will follow based on the alleged failings of the City. While Mayor Lightfoot will continue to blame others including the Federal Government, in reality, she owns this response, just as Richard M. Daley owned the response and complete failure to the Citizens of Chicago that perished in the Heatwave of 1995. The critique of the cities response is well documented and it was a scathing indictment of leadership at that time. It is likely, once a recovery takes place from the COVID19 response, history will not look kindly on the preparedness efforts of this administration. Time will tell and history will take note.
I reported a Hydrant Crew with no plumber and missing a Laborer today. Mayor Lori Lightfoot is sending crews out with no Helmets, Vests, safety Cones, and exposing CONVID-19. Cheap paper b.s. masks do nothing and the close working as demanded by the Department of Water Management Commissioner Conner is all smoke and mirrors. Chicago Taxpayers are being taken for a ride. No work is being done and exposing these men to death is a crime.