HOLLY POND, Ala. – The Holly Pond Town Council on Monday evening took a few moments to recognize Cullman County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Brandon Woods for his role in stopping a high-speed pursuit in late June.
Councilman Paul Brown said he had hoped to recognize Woods in person at the meeting, and though the deputy was not in attendance, Brown recounted the incident.
“He was the closest and deployed some spike strips that slowed the car down enough for the Hanceville Police unit to pull up,” said Brown.
On the phone Tuesday, Cullman County Sheriff Matt Gentry said, “I’m proud of the work Deputy Brandon Woods did, along with the other deputies.”
Gentry said Brown was at home when he heard the call about the pursuit and knew he was the closest unit and could get there first. He deployed the spike strips to disable the vehicle.
“I just want to thank Brandon Woods and all the deputies for their efforts in apprehending these suspects,” Gentry said. “They all did a good job in keeping the community safe.”
At Monday’s meeting, Councilwoman Michelle Bell chimed in with another story about Woods’ heroic deeds, recounting how he was called for a truck that went off the road and into a creek and ended up going into the water himself to pull the driver from the vehicle.
Brown said he will formally recognize Woods the next time he is able to attend a council meeting, and Mayor Bill Oliver commented, “It’s good to acknowledge when someone has gone above and beyond.”
In old business, Oliver encouraged council members to continue making sure residents have completed the 2020 Census.
“I hope that y’all are seriously pushing people to sign this up,” he stressed. “If we sit back as individual council members and don’t push it and we don’t get those numbers in there, financially it’s gonna affect us a bunch.”
Oliver said Holly Pond will be following other municipalities’ leads by holding prize drawings for people who confirm they have completed the census. Holly Pond residents who have completed the census can register for prizes by sending an email with the confirmation of completion to townofhollypond@outlook.com or by bringing a copy to Holly Pond Town Hall.
After having it on the agenda for several months, the council received a visit from a representative of Living Water Services to go over the Town’s annual Municipal Water Pollution Prevention (MWPP) report, which grades municipal wastewater plants on their performance throughout the year. The report works on a point basis where a perfect system has a score of 0, and each infraction adds points to the total. The council was pleased to hear the Town received a score of 50 – 40 points for having a 20-year old system and 10 points for high-flow vents that exceeded the amount of water permitted to discharge into the creek earlier in the year – which fell within the “No Departmental Action” range.
Other items of business included approving the annual donation of $1,000 to the Good Samaritan Health Clinic, signing a resolution declaring April “Fair Housing Month” (which Oliver did not get the chance to do during the actual month of April due to the sudden restrictions), and announcing to anyone planning to run in the 2020 Municipal Election that qualification closes July 21.
Copyright 2020 Humble Roots, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
