New laws, ideas sought for future power outages
am 10.03.2006 13:32:41 von lkgeo1New laws, ideas sought for future power outages
By CHRISTINE MARGIOTTA,
Updated: 3/9/2006 10:10:32 PM
The windstorm that knocked out power for thousands on Feb. 17 exposed
local response flaws that elected officials will now try to fix with
better communication -- and new legislation.
Equipping all local schools with generators, helping residents wire
their homes for back-up power and using hospital discharge forms to
find people with critical electricity needs were some ideas officials
from six northern New York counties discussed Thursday when they met
with National Grid management to brainstorm ways of better preparing
for future power outages.
Government leaders from Warren, Washington, Saratoga, Essex, Hamilton
and Clinton counties also noted a marked breakdown in communication,
seemingly caused by a lack of frequent updates from National Grid.
Company managers said Thursday that emergency services crews and
government leaders were updated every four to six hours on the
windstorm's aftermath and the restoration of power.
But the lack of power shut down television and telephone service for
244,000 statewide, making local shelter information difficult to find.
Setting up the shelters proved overwhelming for the Red Cross once word
began to spread of the storm's severity.
"We had 10 requests in a half hour for shelters from Malta to
Ticonderoga," said Eileen Reardon, Executive Director of the Red Cross'
Adirondack/Saratoga chapter.
Washington County officials said much of the Red Cross' and the state
Emergency Management Office's resources were depleted by the time they
called for help.
"Maybe the old-fashioned phone tree would have worked better," said
Sen. Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury. She and others agreed to encourage
people to invest in battery-powered radios to receive quicker outage
updates and shelter information in the future.
Little and Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward, R-Willsboro, vowed Thursday to
begin drafting a new state law that would free emergency services
workers from liability while responding to the aftermath of a
widespread disaster, such as the windstorm. Currently, firefighters are
protected by law only if an official state of emergency has been
declared, they explained.
Harry Gutheil, chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors,
was the first to suggest the new legislation at Thursday's meeting,
saying many firefighters feared they'd be held responsible if the
generators they dispensed didn't work properly or damaged a home.
"Fire departments are hesitant to power up people with generators
because they're concerned about the liability they'd face," said Essex
County Emergency Services Coordinator Raymond Thatcher.
Johnsburg Town Supervisor William Thomas suggested encouraging
homeowners -- particularly those in rural areas -- to wire their homes
for a back-up generator. He said that process only costs about $100.
Thomas also suggested giving each school in the area generators, so the
buildings could be used for makeshift shelters if needed.
Little suggested including a clause on hospital discharge forms that
gives patients the option of forwarding their addresses to National
Grid to quicken the process of finding residents in need of power for
life-saving oxygen or kidney dialysis machines. Laura Stebbins of Glens
Falls Hospital indicated such a move would not violate patient
confidentiality laws.
The drafting process for the proposed legislation will begin Monday,
Little said.