As Maritimers watch the crisis in Texas unfold, many are asking pointed questions about the kind of evacuation plans in place in the event of a similar situation.
The images in Houston have been both striking and deeply disturbing as the massive hurricane touched down in the area.
The wrath of Mother Nature is something Maritimers have experienced before. Just ask 87-year-old Carrie Stevens, who broke her pelvis and arm during a snow storm last winter. Paramedics had to slide a stretcher over a snowbank to get her to the hospital.
“Yeah, I had a nice sleigh ride,” says Stevens. "Must be very frightening for kids as well as the adults, I would think."
Now fully recovered, Stevens can't help but wonder what would happen if a storm like Harvey left us in the same situation as Houston.
"It makes you realize how fortunate we are that we've not had any of that around here,” she says, “and what on Earth would we do if it ever happened.”
Maritime cities do have a plan if a major weather event happens in our region. Public service announcements urge Saint Johners to follow special signage out of the city if need be.
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality is currently updating its emergency plan based on hard lessons learned from the Thanksgiving Day flooding in 2016.
Halifax hopes to address some administrative changes to its plan. From now on, all the key players will be brought together in what's called an Instant Command System.
"If we need to do an evacuation up front, we will,” says Chief Roy Hollett of Halifax Regional Fire. “Or do we need to put people on notice… within an hour, within two hours? Whatever time we think is going to work."
Stevens says that’s the kind of information she’s looking for if the time comes.
“But yet again, if I could get out of town with my little car, I would be packing it and I would be gone,” says Stevens.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Bruce Frisko.
