Town taking lessons from major storms

Emergency response personnel are working to improve the town's plans in the wake of a busy 2011. Courtesy photos.

There are two ways to look at tropical storm Irene and the late October nor’easter - the two weather events that wreaked havoc on most of Connecticut’s citizens last August and October. The first is for the disasters they were and the emergencies they created, and the second is as a learning experience.

“After storm Irene, we held a major debrief, and made a list of 15 things we could do to better prepare for the next emergency event,” said Manchester Town Manager Scott Shanley. Some of the items on the list, he said, were technical, such as making changes on how to better use their Emergency Operations Center and improving the town’s internal process so that those manning the phones would be connected in real time with the latest updated information.

Part of the assessment was looking at a worst-case scenario. During Irene, there were only about 15 people staying at the shelter set up at the Manchester Senior Center, and emergency personnel considered what they might need to do if that number increased to 100 and they needed to suddenly move the shelter to the high school. “While in the process of planning for the drill, the next event occurred, and storm Alfred became our drill. We had at one point as many as 400 people staying at the high school and the high school staff was serving 2,000 meals a day,” said Shanley.

Additionally, while there were many people who did not need to stay overnight at the town shelter, hundreds of residents made use of comfort stations to briefly get out of the cold and to charge their cell phones and other electronics. Shanley said the town will be looking at better ways to design and accommodate those who utilize comfort stations.

As for those in need of health care during emergency situations, Shanley said nurses have created an algorithm and protocols in conjunction with ECHN Manchester Memorial Hospital to best determine which residents should receive in-hospital care and which residents could receive adequate care in a shelter.

On Nov. 30, state Sen. Steve Cassano (D-Manchester), Manchester Public Works Director Mark Carlino, and other Manchester officials testified before Gov. Dannel Malloy’s Two Storm Panel on their experiences dealing with the October storm, and some of their recommendations were made part of the panel’s report.

Carlino said when he spoke at the panel, he left officials with four main points, the first that CL&P continue to reinvest in its infrastructure.

“We found in Manchester that where CL&P made investments in the last few years in hardened wire and new utility poles, we didn’t have as many line breakages from downed limbs,” Carlino said. He also recommended that CL&P and individual town emergency management teams work together regularly to creative cohesive emergency plans, and that both the state and CL&P look at how they can collect data using the latest GIS capabilities to streamline collecting and conveying information in a more timely manner.

Carlino said he also recommended that CL&P formalize a training program with municipal employees on how to conduct proper damage assessments in their towns.

“A benefit to Manchester was that we were able to collect information, assemble it and send it on to CL&P in a format they could use,” said Carlino.

“One of the lessons we learned [from the two storms] is that our town’s preparedness was pretty good, but many townspeople were ill-prepared,” said Don Janelle, deputy director of Manchester Emergency Management. He recommended that every household have an emergency “Go Kit” that includes, among other things, copies of identification and other important documents, medications, money, ample water and even food for your pets. “We call it ‘Purses, Pets and Pills,’” said Janelle. “If you’re oxygen-dependent, you should arrange with your supplier ahead of time where you can obtain oxygen. You have to be self-sufficient.”

Janelle said every family should have a plan that includes a high level of detail, from designating a family member or friend outside the region that they can call in to report their whereabouts and that they are safe, to packing toys or games for rambunctious children who might be holed up in a shelter for an unspecified period of time. A helpful emergency checklist, he said, can be found at: http://www.ready.gov/are-you-ready-guide.

“Basically, if you have the supplies to live with no electricity, heat and water for five days, then you’re prepared,” said Janelle. “The more prepared you are, the less the impact an emergency will have on you.”