HURRICANE EARL: Public safety paramount to first responders

As Hurricane Earl makes its approach, the greatest concern is public safety both during and after the storm.

While Earl threatens to merely brush Craven County, first responders prepare for the most precarious of situations involving people and property.

“There’s a wide range of things that could happen with a storm,” said Township 9 Fire Chief Jonathon Gaskins.

His all-volunteer department continues to actively prepare for Earl’s impact, starting with preparing the station for overnight operations. About 10 volunteer firefighters have agreed to man the station.

“The biggest thing ... is preparations for them being able to stay at the station,” Gaskins said.

Crews also are making sure the fire trucks are running properly and have full tanks of fuel, gathering equipment like chain saws, and ensuring that the emergency generators are operational.

Crews are ready to handle the possibility of downed power lines, blocked roadways, fires and floods.

“One of our largest concerns being out in the county … we try to help the state out as much as we can by making sure the main thoroughfares are cleared, so emergency vehicles can pass or people can get out if they have to,” Gaskins said.

In New Bern, the city’s three fire stations remain prepared for flooding as well, Deputy Chief Bobby Boyd said. Some private individuals have offered their row-type boats to add to the boats the fire department owns in case it becomes necessary to evacuate people from flooded areas.

While the city’s fire stations are manned 24 hours per day by staff firefighters, Boyd has cancelled any scheduled vacation time and has put everyone on stand-by, he said.

Equipment and manpower is strategically placed throughout the city, to be able to effectively respond to any emergency as quickly as possible, he said.

“We take each one of our stations and make them self-sufficient,” Boyd said.

While such a high level of preparation likely will prove unnecessary, it still proves useful.

“It’s not work in vain,” Boyd said. “Because, being prepared for the worst acts like a drill.”

The two major issues that cause safety issues during storms are flooding and debris, City Manager Mike Epperson said. The New Bern Police Department is ready to assist with both, while continuing with any other police matter that may arise, he said.

“They have adequate staffing and have talked to their staff about making preparations to be recalled (to duty),” Epperson said.

The department keeps employees up to date through briefings, e-mails and an information phone system, Deputy Chief Ed Preston said. As many officers as necessary, up to and including the entire force, will be on duty. Officer staffing requirements come from information gathered and developed by the city manager, department heads and the emergency management agency. Officers will remain on the ready at the main station and locations throughout the city, to provide for the safest, quickest response.

“For us it’s not anything special. It’s a standard procedure we follow for emergencies,” Preston said. 

P. Christine Smith can be reached at 252-635-5666 or pcsmith@freedomenc.com.