This letter is to offer more information regarding the natural gas leak in the Jail Building on Saturday, September 6, 2025.
The County’s primary immediate concern was and is the safety and well-being of our employees. In hindsight, as is often the case, the leak’s effects on our employees may have been avoided had different decisions been made at that time.
The earlier article indicated the gas leak and subsequent illness of the dispatchers was due to the dangers of an old building. The reality is that gas leaks happen in buildings regardless of their age. It was previously stated to the Commissioner’s Court there were numerous reports to the Sheriff of the smell of Natural Gas in the jail building over the past 3 to 4 weeks, but in each instance the smell was dissipated shortly thereafter so Atmos Energy was not called to test.
When the gas leak was confirmed, the Sheriff’s Department was in a quandary weighing the safety of the employees against the safety of the public that would be threatened if our 911 service and dispatch were abruptly halted. The Sheriff chose to move forward with dispatchers in the building after attempting to ventilate the building. The dedicated dispatcher was called to work a second 12-hour shift from Saturday night through Sunday morning after working her regular 12-hour Saturday shift despite feeling continued effects of the gas exposure. Unfortunately, the building was not vented enough and despite her valiant efforts, she had to be transported by EMS to the hospital following the second 12-hour shift.
On Monday, the employees’ safety was the paramount issue at the Commissioner’s Court meeting following the Saturday/Sunday gas leak events at the jail. Last week’s article misstated that the Commissioners and I said that no one should enter the building in the future. In fact, I did a status walk through the building last Friday and thankfully there is no scent of gas. In Court, we did say that we felt no one should have entered the building after the gas leak had caused illness to an employee on Saturday night. With the advantage of hindsight, I am sure that all would agree.
In response to the need to facilitate an immediate alternative to address the needs of the public and the Sheriff’s department, I began a series of conference calls and in-person meetings with Mills County Judge Jett Johnson and Mills County Sheriff James Jones. Our great Mills County neighbors were willing to help our dispatchers from the beginning. By Thursday, San Saba Commissioners Court signed an interlocal agreement to allow our dispatchers to operate in Mills County for a period of up to six months while we work on a new location in San Saba. The interlocal agreement was approved by the Commissioner Court of Mills County on September 12.
The Commissioners Court and I do not consider the existing jail building to be a long-term solution for a jail or dispatch and it currently remains temporarily vacated. The process for opening a new dispatch and jail facility is wrought with state statutes regarding jail standards and security of their communications. Prior to this crisis, over the last year, the County has been diligently working towards a workable solution for the future. A balancing act of your tax dollars and the needs of our community for a jail/dispatch center. The building located at 502 E. Commerce was purchased in December and the County has been working with an architect versed in jail standards on a design that would give us a safe and modern building for dispatch, a 72-hour holding facility with at least 3 holding cells, and a proper Sheriffs office. Our hopes are the building will also provide a much-needed Emergency Operations Center with the possibility of adding a Driver License Office for our community.
In addition to meeting with Mills County, I am meeting with the Architect to create a design within the building at 502 E. Commerce for dispatch to be built in as short a time as possible. The Sheriff and I will also be meeting with Jail Standards in Austin to discuss the options available to San Saba County.
Our Commissioners and I will continue to work with the sheriff's office to protect our community, while providing a safe working environment for all county employees. As always, my door is open, and I am happy to discuss our County at any time.
God Bless our County and it’s dedicated employees.