Texas EMS Magazine, Volume 17, Number 3, May/June 1996 Page: 42
66 p. : col. ill.View a full description of this periodical.
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I
Even large helicopters were no matchfor
Hurricane Celia, which blew into Corpus
Christi on August 3, 1970. Hurricane
Celia caused millions of dollars in property
damage in the Corpus Christi area.
to educate the public on some of
the changes in expectations that
will follow a disaster. For exam-
ple, triage protocols will often be
altered when a disaster plan is put
into effect. Relatively minor prob-
lems may be either denied service
or referred to an alternate agency.
The public needs to be aware of
Tires???
Why all the concern about tires
for ambulances? Think about it.
Once the major debris is cleared
off the streets, finally allowing
for vehicle traffic, what's left?
All the stuff that pokes holes in
tires, that's what. And that's as-
suming you can use the road!
Cross-country travel in a Type
III ambulance is an adventure
itself, not counting what is out
there for you to run over. One
of the major problems encoun-
tered over and over in a post-
landfall environment is a
shortage of tires for ambulanc-
es. Without making allowances
for that, most EMS units will be
out of service following their
first run or two. So, add this to
your list of things to do: Make
sure you have access to enough
tires to allow you to operate af-
ter the storm passes.ige S
this fact prior to the storm.
What EMS should re-
member As a member of
the community, an EMS
providers bears an obliga-
tion to that community to
lend assistance during
times of crisis. This obli-
gation does not mean that
they must place their personnel in
jeopardy. Most providers in the
hurricane impact area will cease
operations when the wind speed
reaches 65 mph, due to instability
of the high profile vehicles. The res-
idents of the service area must be
made aware of this consideration,
and realize that EMS may not be
available during the worst part of
the storm.
Also, emergency service pro-
viders will often be among the vic-
tims of a disaster, especially in the
advent of a major hurricane land-
fall. Flooded storage facilities, sta-
tions damaged by high winds and/
or flood waters, loss of radio com-
munications, vehicles unable to op-
erate due to flooded or debris-
blocked roadways, lack of uncon-
taminated fuel and tire shortages
will all result in a less-than-optimal
response capability. Local hospi-
tals that are still operational will be
overwhelmed with people injured
as a result of the storm.
No area immune to the effects
Although hurricane preparation is
mainly directed to EMS providers
along the coast, those elsewhere in
the state are not immune
from the effects of a major
storm. A hurricane land-
fall can have an impact
many hundreds of miles
inland. For example, Hur-
ricane Allen, a relatively
weak storm, came up the
Rio Grande Valley in
1981. Many private air-
plane owners in the coast-
al area, in an effort to442?
Texas EMS Magazine May/June 1996
protect their aircraft, flew them to
Austin, out of the storm's reach.
Unfortunately, the tornados
spawned by the hurricane de-
stroyed many of the private air-
craft at the Austin Airport,
including many that had been
evacuated from the coast. As this
example illustrates, preparedness
is an issue that is not limited to the
hurricane impact area along the
coast.
Better to be prepared Last
season was a record year for the
number of hurricanes that formed
in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.
Once again, Texas avoided any di-
rect impact of a major storm. We
cannot continue to count on good
luck. Preparedness is the key to
survival. EMS can prepare, and
help citizens prepare, by educating
them about what they need, and
what they can expect from emer-
gency services during-and after-
a hurricane. For additional
information on this or other emer-
gency preparedness issues, contact
your local TDH office or the Emer-
gency Preparedness Team in Aus-
tin at (512) 834-6700.
Wind gustsfrom Hurricane Celia were
measured at 161 miles per hour at the
Corpus Christi National Weather
Service Office, enough to topple trains.
The storm spawned tornadoes andflash
flooding statewide and caused millions
in damages, including $7.6 million of
flood damage in Dallas County.
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Texas. Department of State Health Services. Texas EMS Magazine, Volume 17, Number 3, May/June 1996, periodical, May 1996; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1507922/m1/42/: accessed June 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.