Better to be safe than sorry

Did you see the reports on the ice storm wreaking havoc along the eastern seaboard?

They reminded me of the storm that paralyzed Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada in January 1998. Tens of thousands of people were affected. There were massive power outages, hospitals went dark and ATMs went down. There were no banking services, no traffic lights, no cash registers.

Streets were silent save for the awful sound of trees and limbs snapping while encased in ice. Power lines fell and power poles toppled.

It was the most expensive natural disaster in Canada, and what has occurred in New England brought it all back with a vengeance.

I recall as well the power of White Juan, the incredible amount of snow we received and how easily everything ground to a halt in the aftermath of that blizzard.

It was astounding and disturbing because it underscored just how vulnerable we are. We depend mightily on our utilities to power phones, computers, banks; you name it. We are accustomed to our conveniences and when they’re interrupted, the consequences are nearly cataclysmic.

We rely so completely on technology that its absence is crippling. Granted, the ice storm of ’98 and what the folks in New England have experienced are extreme examples, but the point needs to be made; we have lost many of our frontier survival skills. They have been softened by time and circumstance and been replaced in the event of prolonged disaster with a gnawing fear when the power fades and the lights go out.

I’m not saying it happens immediately. We do our best to be stoic and take the high road, managing one way or another. But sooner or later we hit a metaphoric wall, resources draw thin and a niggling anxiety creeps. With no way to get any cash and thus food, water and other necessities, the strings tighten.

However, we’re lucky in this region because of a fantastic and responsive emergency infrastructure. When trouble hits, organizations like the Red Cross, Salvation Army, Emergency Measures and volunteer firefighters to name just a few mobilize.

Designated shelters are enabled, generators warm up comfort stations and good people from all walks of life come together to ease the load and wait out the figurative and literal storm.

The weather has been all over the map this fall and I shudder to think what the rest of the winter has in store. We’ve had record high temperatures for this time of year and then the mercury plummets to bitter cold that freezes things solid.

It’s an odd mix of plus and minus that makes me wonder what’s next. It’s not a great feeling, and after seeing the condition of the New England states this weekend, I think it’s wise to prepare an emergency kit.

Don’t know what to include? Go to www.gov.ns.ca for a complete list of things you should have on hand as a contingency.

I’m no doomsayer and it all likely sounds a little frightening, but one should see things as they are and act accordingly rather than be caught out at the last minute and left scrambling when resources are scarce.