The Jones County Board of Supervisors unanimously agreed to extend their local emergency proclamation related to the COVID-19 outbreak to June 1. The supervisors said they could change course before June 1, if new or different direction comes from the Governor’s Office.
The supervisors first issued the coronavirus-related proclamation back on March 16 at the request of Jones County Emergency Operations Center Director Paul Sheffield. The proclamation opened the avenues for additional resources from the state for Jones County.
At the time of the initial proclamation, Jones County had no officially confirmed cases of coronavirus. According to the latest statistics from the Mississippi State Department of Health on Monday morning, the state had 7,550 confirmed cases with 303 deaths – Jones County had 172 of those reported cases with two deaths.
Other action taken by the supervisors on Monday include:
*Extending the local emergency for the April 12 tornado in Jones County to June 1.
*Declaring an emergency for the April 23 storm in north Jones County (Beat 1). Clark Engineers will oversee the cleanup project for that storm.
*Authorized Board President Johnny Burnett to sign a contract with Debris Tech for debris monitoring in Jones County that’s related to the Easter storms.
*Extended the election qualifying deadlines for school board members and election commissioners to July 1.
*Accepted bids from Waters International and Burroughs for a single axle dump truck. The supervisors are reviewing the bids to make sure they meet all specs. The two bids were $99,315.10 and $110,701.00.
*Approved the purchases of one or more knuckle boom trucks and one or more single axle pull trucks.
*The board went into executive session with EDA Director Ross Tucker to discuss updates on potential economic development projects.
Debris Removal and Disposal Services Needed
The supervisors are currently accepting proposals from qualified companies for disaster debris removal and disposal services. The successful proposer will be required to execute a contract to provide said services for a period ending December 31, 2020. All applicants must illustrate in their proposal the ability to meet the required criteria set forth in the RFP, including, but not limited to, the ability to illustrate a company history of providing like services in similar communities with satisfactory performance verifiable through provided references. The complete RFP document is required in order to submit a proposal and is available upon request at no charge from the office of the Board of Supervisors of Jones County, Mississippi, 415 North 5th Avenue in Laurel. Proposals will be accepted until 10 a.m. on Monday, May 11, 2020, and will be received at the following location only: Office of the Jones County Board of Supervisors, 415 North 5th Avenue, Laurel, Mississippi, 39440.