Baldwin County and the U.S. Navy reached an agreement earlier this week to let Baldwin County’s Emergency Management Agency have access to two airstrips in times of natural disaster.

Baldwin County EMA Director Reggie Chitwood told commissioners the mutual aid agreement to use the two fields had been in the works for some time, but that he was happy to announce the negotiations would soon be completed.

“When I became the EMA director, we were looking at ways to centralize the mobilization of assets coming to Baldwin County to assist after catastrophic events,” Chitwood said. “This gives us good staging areas for utility trucks, road clearing vehicles and other necessary tools that allows them a place to mobilize from and work out of.”

The two fields in the agreement are NOLF Silverhill and NOLF Barin in Foley. Chitwood said the locations of the fields were essential to their use.

“Silverhill Field is close to our central EMA facility,” Chitwood said. “And Barin is in a strategic location to be able to help in parts of the county that might be hardest hit in severe weather events.”

The agreement with the Navy will last for one year and will be reviewed and possibly extended on an annual basis.

Baldwin County Commission Chairman Tucker Dorsey said he was pleased the county and Navy could come to a resolution on the issue.

“We’ve been pushing and pulling on this for a while now,” Dorsey said. “It’s gratifying to see that we’ll have access to these fields now and be able to use them to better help citizens if severe weather does happen.”

Commissioner Chris Elliott praised Chitwood and the EMA staff for their efforts in bringing the agreement forward.

“I know we’re planning every single day for the eventuality of a catastrophic event,” Elliott said. “This is the kind of work that the EMA is doing behind the scenes to help keep people safe and make sure we’re doing everything we can to prepare for the worst before it happens.”