Maine Sen. Bill Diamond has a monthly program on the local Windham community cable television network. It is called “Speak Out” and generally, Diamond hosts a live, call-in program on a variety of subjects of local interest. Sometimes he has Town Council members as his panel of experts and local folks can call in and ask questions. And he has tackled topics such as education funding, community events, and even history.
The format is very well accepted, interesting to watch, and almost always on a topic of personal interest.
The most recent program was on Homeland Security and featured local State Representative Gary Plummer from Windham, Windham Fire Chief Charlie Hammond and Sen. Ethan Strimling, who is co-chair of the state’s Homeland Security Task Force, which is studying the needs of all the various towns, cities and segments of the state.
While much of the content was of statewide and national focus, one part of more personal and local interest was that of emergency preparedness of senior citizens.
Most of us can remember catastrophes or emergency situations prior to the ice storm. We remember the forest fires of 1947. We recall hurricanes or snowstorms where we might have been “stranded” for a lengthy period of time, but we were much younger then, and took little notice of the hardship, since our parents probably took care of all the problems and citizens generally were better prepared to cope. (That’s probably where the old line, “make it do or do without” came from.) But what would we do today?
On Speak Out, there was some talk about communication and how emergency personnel (fire department, police, rescue) would know if an elderly person, living alone, was in need of help. What if the phone lines were down or they had no heat. In most of the smaller towns, emergency personnel, especially if they are local folks, know where many of the older people live. Certainly, they are aware of senior housing facilities and nursing homes, but there are many people who live alone.
In the “olden days” about which I write frequently, people were really much more self-sufficient. We could easily go three or four days (and sometimes longer) without leaving the house. When I was growing up, we had a coal-burning furnace, a combination oil/wood stove in the kitchen, an ice box (not an electric refrigerator) and kerosene lamps available if the electricity went out. The cellar had shelves of food preserved in shiny jars, a bin full of potatoes and there were chickens in the henhouse – always a tasty meal. Over in the woods beside the house, there was a spring where we could get water. Fortunately, none of the residents of the house had any kind of health issue.
Today’s world is much different and so are the people and the way we all live. We drive to the grocery store for a loaf of bread or a jug of milk…and we do it several times a week. It’s so convenient, some of us have forgotten the good old days when one trip for food for a week was the norm. We depend on electricity, and the thermostat is our best friend.
The committee or task force which is working on the Homeland Security issue and associated local needs, are working on a list of suggestions for people in an emergency situation. This will probably include a list of items to have on hand and available quickly, just in case. There is also discussion regarding a central place everyone would know was the one place to call to obtain, or give, information in such an emergency.
We look forward to hearing more about this important, potentially life saving project. Most likely, our local emergency personnel will be the source of information.
Meanwhile, if you have any questions about what the state is doing, you are urged to contact Bill Diamond at 892-8941 or via email, diamondhollyd@aol.com, or your local legislator.
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