Are we really ready for a disaster?

This article is the second in a  series by author and Lakeville resident John Neufeld (his latest novel is “April Foolâ€). The first was published March 11 and can be found online at tcextra.com.

How well prepared are hospitals, nursing homes and school shelters to leap into the breach to assist us in the event of a disaster, natural or otherwise?

Over the past few weeks, directors of community services in the town of Salisbury have been interviewed.  

What came from these talks with busy, dedicated people was helpful, reassuring and confident. The first article in this series concentrated on preparations at two area retirement communities. This article concentrates on preparations made by the town of Salisbury — for people as well as for their companion animals.

(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 and Falls Village.)

Anyone who is concerned about what to do in case of disaster should obtain a copy of 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€).

The town of Salisbury

On view at Salisbury Town Hall — and surely in any town’s administrative center in the state — is an Emergency Operations Plan.

Salisbury’s plan is based on two factors: With a population of slightly more than 4,000, 70 percent of the population lives in homes with private wells, and 80 percent of the town’s residents are likely to stay with friends and family in an emergency rather than go to a town shelter.

The plan assumes that assistance will be provided by the state police at the Troop B barracks in North Canaan — even though the emergency services center for 35 towns in this part of the state is at the Troop L barracks in Litchfield (which is also home to Litchfield County Dispatch, the region’s 911 service).

The plan is designed around an emergency of seven days duration only. Nonetheless, the Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance Service (SVAS) has a 14-day supply of fuel for generators (gas and propane), as does Salisbury Central School, the official shelter for the town.

Salisbury Central School can hold as many as 500 people. There are 250 beds, a kitchen, showers, lavatories (including facilities for the handicapped), 50 cots, 100 blankets, 350 chairs and 50 tables.

The ambulance service garage can receive up to 200 people. It has 100 cots and blankets, 50 beds, lavatories, a kitchen operation, 30 tables and more than 200 chairs.

Additionally, SVAS volunteers attend perhaps 100 informational meetings throughout the state each year to maintain their skills, learn new ones and cotton on to the latest in disaster assistance and planning.

Other shelter designations include the Lakeville Hose Company and, if needed, The Hotchkiss School, the Salisbury School, the Lakeville post office  and (in summertime) Lime Rock Park. (Students and faculty at Hotchkiss, the Salisbury School and Indian Mountain School have their own emergency plans, according to the town’s emergency coordinator, Jacqueline Rice.)

The Emergency Operations Plan specifies maintaining “mutual aid agreements with neighboring communities to share assistance and resources.â€

It covers evacuations, protection from looting and vandalism, “protecting and caring for animals during and following emergencies†and emergency warning systems.  

The plan further specifies what must be included in shelters: food, water, sanitary supplies, clothing, bedding, first aid and medical supplies — all kept safe and warm via generator power.

The Red Cross and Salvation Army are to be involved in managing and staffing shelters.

Companion animals

One of the primary reasons so many people in New Orleans remained in their homes despite clear warnings of a hurricane was concern and love for their pets.

It is important to know that “companion animals†are emphatically not allowed in shelters. It is equally important to know that each shelter will have a list of facilities to house dogs, cats and other indoor animals during an emergency.  

While travel and communication will not necessarily be easy, it will be possible to place one’s pets safely and confidently in a facility so designated.

The next article in this series continues with emergency preparations at Sharon Hospital. It will appear in the March 25 edition of The Lakeville Journal.