{"id":115,"date":"2017-10-27T23:01:02","date_gmt":"2017-10-27T23:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/2017\/10\/27\/20171027ready-or-not-a-look-into-connecticuts-hurricane-preparedness\/"},"modified":"2020-09-05T19:52:47","modified_gmt":"2020-09-05T19:52:47","slug":"20171027ready-or-not-a-look-into-connecticuts-hurricane-preparedness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/2017\/10\/27\/20171027ready-or-not-a-look-into-connecticuts-hurricane-preparedness\/","title":{"rendered":"Ready… or not?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A look into Connecticut’s hurricane preparedness<\/h1>\n

By Jenelle Cadigan<\/p>\n

The 2017 Atlantic hurricane<\/span> <\/em>season has already proven to be extremely active and extremely dangerous. So far this year there have been 15 storms, 10 hurricanes and six major hurricanes (category 3 or stronger). These weather systems have resulted in more than 400 deaths, and more than $188 billion in damages. Connecticut has been spared the worst, but there is still a month to go in the season.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Connecticut’s coastline (photo via Google Earth)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

On October 29, 2012, Hurricane Sandy tested the limits of Connecticut\u2019s emergency preparedness programs. According to the National Weather Service<\/a>, Sandy was a \u201cworse-case scenario for storm surge for coastal regions.\u201d By the time Sandy got to New Jersey, it was downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, but the storm surge hit Connecticut right at high tide, causing massive amounts of flooding.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Tropical Cyclone Report<\/span><\/a> created by the National Hurricane Center reports that there was storm surge over nine feet in New Haven, resulting in floodwaters as high as six feet above ground level. Approximately 3,000 homes were damaged, and the state sustained more than $300 million in damages.<\/span><\/p>\n

Five years later, is the state of Connecticut ready for another hurricane\u2026 or not?<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Rick Fontana, Deputy Director of Emergency Operations – New Haven<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cOur biggest fear in the city of New Haven is a hurricane,\u201d says Rick Fontana, Deputy Director of Emergency Operations in New Haven. \u201cIt\u2019s number one. It really is. We\u2019re on the coast, and I think we\u2019re pretty resilient, but when storm surge hits \u2026 that becomes a very significant issue.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the event of a hurricane, Fontana would work to develop strategies that will lessen the impact of a storm, plan and prepare for different types of storms, and help with the response to and recovery from a storm.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fontana also serves as one of five regional coordinators in the state for emergency management. His job there is to communicate with the 30 towns in Connecticut\u2019s Region 2 throughout an emergency, and relay information up to the state coordinators.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Quinnipiac’s Plan for Emergencies<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Quinnipiac University, located in Hamden, Connecticut, falls under Region 2. Edgar Rodriguez is the chief of Public Safety and is also co-captain of the emergency management team at Quinnipiac. The team is made up of about a dozen members from various university departments, including public safety, facilities, health services, and academics. Rodriguez says the team has extensive plans when it comes to storms.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve come up with an emergency evacuation plan and we talk about if there\u2019s a hurricane or a storm coming, what are we doing, how are we preparing for it,\u201d Rodriguez says, adding that although the plans haven\u2019t been approved by the state, they are still important to have.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

When a storm comes, those plans get put into action.<\/span><\/p>\n

The team begins a 24-hour-to-landfall. Members track the storm, gather information from the state and submit that information to Quinnipiac President John Lahey and Provost Mark Thompson, who ultimately decide whether students should stay at school or be sent home.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once that decision is made, the emergency management team starts prepping all departments for landfall. Quinnipiac\u2019s emergency management team only goes through the regional coordinators for assistance if it\u2019s a minor, isolated emergency \u2013 such as power outages on one specific campus. In the case of an event as major as a hurricane, the protocol is to bypass the region and work directly with the state.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe rule of thumb is every town or city should be able to sustain themselves for 72 hours,\u201d Rodriguez says, explaining that Quinnipiac acts as its own sort of town for those 72 hours after landfall, with the emergency management team in charge. \u201cThen after that, you start getting assistance from the state. But the entire time that\u2019s happening, you\u2019re communicating back and forth with the state.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

All the information goes up to the state emergency operations center in Hartford, is organized and then is sent out to the public.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEvery hour [the state is] sending us an update on the storm and we take that update and send it to everybody,\u201d says Rodriguez. He feels that this system of organizing the information is a good way to keep consistency and keep everybody on the same page at a time when there could be a lot going on at once.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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A building-Block Approach<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dan McElhinney, federal preparedness coordinator and national preparedness division director for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), explains that everyone takes a building-block approach for providing and receiving assistance after 72 hours.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAt some point [the town] may have to bring in mutual aid from surrounding communities,\u201d McElhinney says. \u201cWhen the mutual aid has been exhausted, they\u2019ll ask for county level assistance, then they go to the state … then the state will declare a state of emergency. The governor then gets special powers to extend additional dollars to direct other state agencies to assist the local community. When the state no longer has the capacity, the governor will ask the president for an emergency or major disaster declaration. That\u2019s when FEMA gets involved.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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FEMA’s regions (photo via FEMA.gov)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

FEMA is divided into 10 regions, and McElhinney is in charge of FEMA Region 1, which includes all New England states. He says although FEMA can respond in numbers that would outweigh the state help 100-to-1, they are there to support, not to supplant.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBasically under the Stafford Act, we pretty much have tasking authority over all the agencies and departments to assist the state in response and recovery,\u201d McElhinney says. \u201cWe provide a lot of technical assistance, but we are not there to take over.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Mandatory training<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Not only does FEMA provide assistance in the aftermath, but it also provides training services. According to the Quinnipiac website, those who are on the emergency management team have to complete FEMA\u2019s National Incident Management System training. This training is similar to the statewide Emergency Preparedness and Planning Initiative training exercises.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Map of Hurricane Maria on the monitor in the New Haven EOC<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThe state of Connecticut has gotten very aggressive on keeping everyone prepared,\u201d Rodriguez says. \u201cEvery year in October or November we do a drill. It\u2019s mandatory for every town and every city through the state of Connecticut and the last few years have been some type of a hurricane.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

During the two-day statewide drill, state officials provide updates as if there were a real hurricane approaching. The state sends out maps of the storm and asks participants to respond to ongoing situations.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou just lost all power in your town, what are you doing? You\u2019ve got multiple trees that are down, what are you doing? Are you opening up a shelter? How are you transporting people? How much help do you have? Is the fire department on standby? And you have to keep reporting back and forth,\u201d Rodriguez says.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Emergency operations center – New Haven<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

The exercises are meant to be intense, but they\u2019re also meant to replicate a real-life situation so that if and when a hurricane does hit, everyone is prepared. And apparently, you can never be too prepared.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen a hurricane strikes, people kind of become complacent and never think it\u2019s going to be as bad as it is. We\u2019ve been fortunate, but … our departments on the preparedness level always scale one level higher than we normally would,\u201d says Fontana. \u201cWe\u2019re always prepared but we always prepare above and beyond because it\u2019s easier for us to scale back than it is to scale up in the middle of a crisis.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The training drills are mandatory for cities and towns that want to receive grant money in order to build resiliency in places along the shorelines or rebuild after a weather event occurs.<\/span><\/p>\n

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coastal resiliency and innovative thinking<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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