PARIS – Speaking before county employees Tuesday, Oxford County Emergency Management Agency Director Scott Parker outlined his plans for an emergency operations center.

“This is a first step toward getting the depth we need,” Parker said.

It is unlikely that the center will be activated for small-scale emergencies, and will not be fully operational during limited emergencies such as the floods that occurred in Bethel in July, he said. The center would be mobilized in the event of a large-scale emergency, such as an ice storm or widespread flooding.

The operations center would be based in the grand jury meeting room in the basement of the Oxford County Superior Courthouse on Western Avenue in Paris, near the existing offices of the EMA. The center would include a 46-inch LCD flat-screen television with Internet capabilities, four phone lines, a mobile conference call device and a radio room.

Under the operational plans, county representatives would also take part in the center’s activities during an emergency. The responsibilities of county commissioners would include directing county personnel to staff or support the center, directing implementation of protective actions for public safety, and providing information to media outlets.

The county administrator would provide assistance in ordering supplies, while the county treasurer would maintain financial records, including payroll and financial exchanges with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The EMA is part of an online emergency communications system, which allows Maine’s 16 counties to link to each other and the state and give updates on situations. The EMA’s Web site includes updates on road closures and other issues during emergencies, and includes links to assistance forms, river level monitors in Bethel and Canton, and other information.

Dispatcher Candy Jack said EMA is an alternate site for the Regional Communications Center, and questioned how dispatchers would be able to function during an emergency if the dispatch center is nonfunctional and the operations center is activated. Parker said he believes the dispatch center will continue to function during a major emergency, but agreed that more discussion is needed on the issue.

Parker said there is no alternate location for the operations center if an emergency forces an evacuation of the courthouse.

Mike Hatch, the emergency management director at Stephens Memorial Hospital, said a full incident command team at the hospital would comprise 78 people addressing issues such as infrastructure, security, resources and finances. He said in the event of a major medical emergency, acute care centers would be opened around the county.

The EMA is gradually upgrading its seven large and 11 small Red Cross shelter sites around the county to include generators. Parker said the EMA is also looking to train Community Emergency Response Teams to operate the shelters.