A twister of fate
By Dr. Peter W. Kujtan, B.Sc., M.D., Ph.D.
When I get a few days off, I like to head north to enjoy the solitude and peace that a handed-down family hunt camp has to offer in the summer. It is no surprise that my anticipated time off is spiced with disaster. Two days before my arrival a freak storm wreaked through the area and no less than six funnel clouds were reported to touch down. With no loss of life, just loss of conveniences like phone and power, and OPP suggestions to post-pone proposed cottaging, I did what any redneck would do. I filled the spare tank with gas, the cooler with ice, and headed straight for the hunt camp determined to enjoy nature even if it killed me. Stopping at Timmy’s in Minden I was surprised to see the power was on. I wondered if it had anything to do with the fourteen hydro crews taking a break in their parking lot. Essentials first! Is the law of the jungle I presume? Minden was sold out of generators, chain saws, flash-lights and batteries. The Kinmount LCBO also seemed to have power and so a small case of cold beer was added to the warming ones in the trunk. Do you ever wonder why commercials always show four-wheel drives charging through fresh snow? That is because they don’t traverse fallen trees very well. The hike into the camp was exhilarating and the solitude eerie. August weather is warm and mosquitoes almost gone. No lights, no fridges, no phones and no pagers. It was nature at its pristine best, almost too good to spoil by donning the lumber-jack gear, chainsaw and ATV only to rescue the stranded car. I suppose it did have the cold beer in it. The second law of cottaging is the “visitors never show up when there is work to be done”, but locals are the first to help each other in times of need. In terms of firewood I think that I am set for the next decade.
A short “black-out” experience is worth its weight in gold to practice emergency preparedness, especially if it occurs during the summer, and you are not one those poor souls dependent on some form of technology for survival. It provides a dry run and reminds us of the value of being ready to survive should a disaster of greater magnitude strike. Many hardy Haliburton residents didn’t even flinch during the storm and black-out. Was it fate, luck, or preparation? I am a tail end Yuppie that can still vaguely recall the strange cold war “fire drills” that rushed us all into the dungeon located beneath my old public school near High Park. Rumor has it that this nuclear fall-out shelter is still gathering cobwebs. I also remember when at the height of the Vietnam War the air-raid sirens sounded for hours around Toronto. The strange part was that no one understood what the wailing sound was about or what to do. This fortunate short circuit served as a reminder that we actually do have an emergency response network
One of those cottage trivia items in my possession is a 50- page guide, published in 1969 by Emergency Canada, entitled “11 Steps to Survival” which outlines what to do in the case of nuclear attack. The chapter on nuclear fall-out and shelter construction was a source of cottage humor until I realized that the rest of the guide has worthwhile meaning even today. Would you be prepared if our power, phone, cable, water, gas supplies were suspended due to a tornado, a snow or an ice storm? Would most people have a 10-day supply of non-perishable goods, water and fuel to see them through a disaster? Is first aid knowledge with a properly equipped kit a priority in your house? How would you communicate with your family, and how would you track the whereabouts of your family members? Are you familiar with setting up a latrine and disposing of waste and garbage? Does anyone even use cash anymore in our magnetic strip crazy existence? Having an emergency pack always ready with essentials like flashlights, portable radios, batteries, first-aid kits, maps, marking pens, water containers, vital documents, rope, whistle, blankets, etc. seems like an extremist gesture these days. We are very fortunate in having an infrastructure that is able to withstand and provide for victims of minor disasters. Ontario does get a good number of tornadoes, blackouts, floods, but in our minds, it is always on a small comparative scale. Having an emergency plan and reviewing it at a family sitdown is a good idea. Anyone who has been associated with a natural disaster realizes that organized progression ceases with the practice drills. Unforeseen elements always produce an air of seeming chaos. I would encourage you to visit the federal emergency preparedness website at www.ocipep.gc.ca. It could save the lives of the ones you care about the most, someday. This week’s column started on birch-bark, and a hole in the ground does keep beer reasonably cool! I was shocked to find an internet café less than 10 kms from my secret spot in the woods. O-yoy-yoy what next?