Town officials are looking at establishing a “clear incident command center” in the event of another plane crash near a Connecticut Light & Power substation and power lines.
Town officials have asked CL&P to designate people to be emergency contacts in the event of another crash.
First Selectman Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers said Tuesday she met with CL&P representatives last week to discuss the plane crash on Commerce Drive on Jan. 13. The doomed plane was an experimental plane built by John Foster, a former NASA engineer.
His plane struck a high tension power line next to a CL&P substation, while attempting to land at Waterbury-Oxford Airport.
Foster was killed in the crash, which is still under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The crash caused a power outage to 6,000 local homes and the airport.
Drayton-Rogers said air safety and follow-up after incidents remain high priorities.
“We wanted to look into the crash in depth,’‘ she said. “We want see how we can improve things and work with CL&P in case of a worst case scenario,’‘ she said.
The January crash wasn’t a worst case scenario, but “it was a good time to sit down and talk about this,’‘ she said of the meeting that took place last week.
She also said CL&P will be setting up a training course at the site of the substation for all first responders in town so the can be prepared in the event of another crash. (The plane landed inside the fenced area surrounding the
substation.)
It will be coordinated by Fire Chief Scott Pelletier, who is also the town’s Emergency Management Director.
Pelletier said the course will allow first responders to be more aware of what’s at the substation, which is located at the base of the airport. He said CL&P also agreed to give them a list of people to contact in an emergency.
“That way will will have someone from CL&P be included in the command center who can make decisions and pass that information on,’‘ he said.
