Anticipate the worst that could happen

This article is the first in a series by author and Lakeville resident John Neufeld (his latest novel is “April Foolâ€).

To say we live in nervous times would be an understatement. Although it rarely happens this way, with the weather as unpredictable as it has been, a Northwest Corner blackout could conceivably stretch for hours or days; a 10-day blackout in midwinter with impassable roads, fallen trees, downed power lines and freezing temperatures is not inconceivable.

Here is a partial list of what wouldn’t work in most homes and businesses in our area: private wells using electric pumps, heating, electric radios, televisions, cable systems (all three for Comcast: phone, cable, Internet access, as happened some weeks ago), garage doors, lights, computers, printers, electric stoves, toilets (in homes with private wells), bank ATMs, gas station pumps, electric seeing-eye doors, freezers, handheld communication devices (satellite powered) that need recharging, clocks, alarms systems, checkout machines, septic systems in lakeside homes where leeching fields are above one’s home and which have been using pumps to disperse waste.

Other potential hazards in those conditions: a drop in deliveries of heating oil, food, water, clothing, shoes, blankets and emergency supplies. 

And should wires be downed, with fallen trees blocking roads in certain areas, relief and repair could certainly be risky, dangerous and long-awaited.

For those whose homes don’t have generators, what can be done?

More importantly, how well-prepared are hospitals, nursing homes and  school shelters to leap into the breach to assist us?

Over the past few weeks, directors of community services for Salisbury have been interviewed. Not to be ignored, the national tension about terrorism and natural disasters played a part in our questions.

What came from these talks with busy, dedicated people was helpful, reassuring and confidence-building.

(Please note: while we’re largely concentrating on the Lakeville/Salisbury area in this article, every town in Region One has its own emergency planning blueprint —North Canaan, Cornwall, Kent, Sharon, Falls Village.)

It’s up to us

One of our first worst-case tools is the Connecticut Guide to Emergency Preparedness, available through the postal service, by e-mail or in almost any town hall (online, go to ct.gov/dph and look under “featured linksâ€). 

This manual outlines what we need to survive different sorts of emergencies. Its thrust is that preparedness is up to each of us as individuals and as families.

Much of the information is common sense, by now familiar. Family meeting places, a three-day supply of food and water, kitchen tools of all sorts (although not electric), extra batteries, cash on hand, a car emergency kit, etc.

But what may not be familiar to us are the preparations made by the institutions, towns and caregivers in our area. To stay on top of the state’s requirements and guidelines takes a good deal of money, spent always “on the come,†that is, we prepare ourselves for the worst-case scenario. 

And it is just these scenarios that our caregivers — among others the Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance Squad, the Lakeville Hose Company, Sharon Hospital, the town of Salisbury itself — have to consider every day of the year when thinking about a potential power outage that lasts  and lasts.

Noble Horizons

 Speaking with JoAnn Luning (Noble Horizons’ wellness coordinator) and Geoffrey Klish (director of environmental services at Noble) is reassuring.

Noble Horizons has all Connecticut Department of Health emergency plans up and in place, and all preparations are checked and maintained daily.

All elevators and common rooms are heated by generators, which are battery tested once a month, as are lights in hallways and within exit signs.

Noble is also making plans to install new sockets in each room for both electricity and oxygen. 

Administrators have an arrangement whereby residents of nearby Sarum Village may take shelter at Noble if necessary. Generally, only those people needing medical services who are outside the boundaries of Noble would otherwise be allowed to take shelter there (other town residents would seek shelter at Salisbury Central School).

Noble is on town water and sewer. Its main buildings are interconnected and are heated by liquid propane and a forced air heating system.

Staff members have portable radios and cellphones and two-way radios for on-site communication. There are also telephone “trees†for communication between residents.

Noble has identified members of the staff who can multi-task, that is, do more than one assigned job. This offers backup, so that all needs are met.

Noble’s food services department uses propane and has a three-day supply of  food on hand at all times. It has a 14-day supply of incontinence supplies. It has a home broadcasting system, on generator — although not all the cottages can receive the broadcasts.

And that underscores one big “what-if?â€: Noble has two populations, those in independent  cottages and those in the main buildings (who are there for long-term rehabilitation or because they need assisted-living care).

Generators are in place throughout the property — but not at the cottages, unless the residents have had them installed themselves. These cottagers are therefore more vulnerable in a devastating snowstorm to problems ranging from no power to frozen pipes. 

Looking into the always obscure future, Noble would rely on deliveries from suppliers of food and other essentials.

Imaginatively, it has lines out to area hunters, fishermen and survivalists who might be able to provide extra victuals in an emergency.

Geer Rehabilitation and 

Assisted Living, Geer Village

Geer Chief Operating Officer John Horstman is unfazed by the prospect of emergency planning. His director of emergency preparations, Scott Beecher, director of Geer’s physical plant, is equally calm.

To begin with, Geer uses home heating oil and has one 10,000-gallon tank and several smaller ones throughout its large campus. There are also many generators throughout Geer Village, the community’s residential operation. There is a two-month supply of diesel fuel for buses and other transportation needs. Its laundry (needed to ensure there is a steady supply of clean linens) is on generator power.

Geer’s sprinkler system is hard-wired and on generators; all sliding glass doors and individual heating units in the apartments and all its public spaces are on generator power.  Ceiling lights, exit lights and stair lights are capable of being operated on generator power, as are the phone systems, cable television and radio.

Geer has its own pharmacy, which is refrigerated and on generators.

Geer will welcome outsiders to its facilities in case of emergency.  It has a seven-day supply of food on hand.  Its kitchens and restaurant use propane gas. Its nursing carts are equipped with flashlights, candles, supplies and water.  It has a three-day supply of bottled water. 

It would invite its staff to bring in food and freezer holdings from their homes. And staff could be collected, roads permitting, by Geer’s own fleet of vehicles.

The next article in this series continues with emergency preparations made by the town of Salisbury. It will appear in the March 18 edition of The Lakeville Journal.