ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
Winter has offically begun, and that means an increased potential for cold temperatures and severe winter storms.
With that in mind, Seward County Emergency Management staff wants to remind people to take some precautions to help stay safe.
“Typically, in Southwest Kansas, our bigger snowfalls happen in either February or March, so it’s usually closer to the beginning of spring when those chances increase, meaning those are the times people should be particularly careful of the weather,” Emergency Management Director Greg Standard said. “However, large snowstorms can occur in Western Kansas at literally any time, so people need to be prepared. It’s always recommended to plug any window and/or door drafts, which not only keeps everyone safe but also helps cut down on overall energy loss. It’s also important to keep your HVAC unit maintained and the filters updated so everything’s functioning the way it’s supposed to. Those are particularly important to do this time of the year, and we’d also like people to think about being prepared and take care of themselves during a winter storm event. We recommend having enough water and provisions and any needed medicines, etc., to last at least three days. In our community, we have maybe 100 responders to help more than 20,000 people, and we can’t be everywhere at once. With that in mind, the more you can have prepared on your end, the better off you’ll be, and it’ll also help our relief efforts. Around the house, have things set up so your water pipes won’t freeze – however, if they do, don’t use any type of fire to thaw things out, because that will end rather badly. If you’ve got travel plans and happen to be stranded on the road with no heat or anything, you want to be in a position where you can wait in your vehicle for help to arrive, so be sure you’re dressed warmly, and we recommend having a blanket or two in your car and an emergency kit.”
“We also recommend having one or two weather apps on your phone to follow, I know the National Weather Service does good about those updates, and Seward County has an app to keep track of for any severe weather,” Emergency Management Deputy Director Tim Newman added. “The main thing is, before you travel, check the weather, because you never know what could happen. It was just in January when that day of the blizzard, conditions were clear until about noon or so, and then the blizzard came through quickly and severely, which left some people stuck on the roads. If you take just a few basic precautions and do some looking ahead, that will save you a big headache.”
Standard added no matter what severe weather comes through, the Emergency Management staff will be ready to respond.
“When we hear of severe weather being predicted, we’ll notify our emergency personnel partners and public works partners like the Road & Bridge crews so they can plan accordingly and start treating the roads and all of that,” Standard said. “We’ll also share that information with the public through various media and advise everyone so they can be more prepared for what could come through. Our goal is always to get as much information out to the public as possible so they can know what’s coming and hopefully make good choices. Then, we’ll shift more into response mode and supply whatever support is needed, whether it’s working with state and/or federal partners or providing equipment to the local public works crews. With the blizzard that came through in January, we did have to rescue multiple people who had been stranded on the roads, so we helped them get to some sort of shelter and into safety so they could get out of the weather that night. We then worked with state and federal partners afterward for the disaster declaration, and we also worked with the utility companies to get power and everything else back to the community. Honestly though, our response could include anything and everything necessary.”
Newman added he hopes the winter remains relatively quiet.
“Best case scenario, we don’t have any severe weather that blows through and everything remains relatively calm weather-wise. However, if something does end up happening, we encourage everyone to heed the warnings that get put out and just overall be smart,” Newman said. “The easiest rescue to do is the one we don’t have to do at all. If roads get closed, stay off and stay home, because your trip is not as important as your life – yeah, it might be a bummer if you have to postpone a trip or get-together you’ve been looking forward to for a long time, but it’s not worth risking your life if the weather conditions aren’t conducive to traveling. Don’t make the emergency personnel come out and rescue you just because you felt you had to go to the store for something you probably could have done without for the next day or two.”
Overall, Standard and Newman said, taking some basic precautions will save a major headache in the long run.
“This really goes for any kind of severe weather, but any home emergency kit should include a flashlight, some type of battery-operated weather radio to keep updated on everything, a few days’ worth of food and water and other provisions, an necessary medications, warm clothing, and good shoes,” Standard said. “You never want to be walking around after any severe weather situation in just flip flops or something flimsy like that, so it’s good to have a good, sturdy pair of shoes so you can be more mobile and able to get around. Also, be ready to move to shelter – I always say if you wait until the last minute to move to where you need to go, you’ve waited way, way too long, so move to shelter early and then basically hunker down so you’re safe and secure and out of danger.”
“We also recommend having your car full of fuel and with some emergency items in there. I always tell people an emergency supply kit should be the same as if you were going camping, the necessities are basically the same,” Newman added. “And I would also like to remind people, the next CERT class will be Jan. 24 through 26, and anyone wanting to participate in that would just need to contact Norma Jean Dodge at Seward County Community College at (620) 417-1171 to register.”
