Recent events - lessons to learn, points to raise etc

[Kintyre Forum News]

Although the power restoration in Kintyre is still to be completed I thought it might be a good idea to start a thread while this whole episode is fresh in peoples minds asking what lessons from this can the public, council, SSE, emergency services etc improve, act on etc if something like this should happen again?

We know the Council, Councillors etc read this forum so it makes sense to gather public opinion to improve procedures in future. This thread is NOT for any other purposes than this so please don't go off - this is to provide feedback on what can be improved.

On a personal note I'm in awe of all the various services and their commitment to dealing with what can only be described as a major crisis. Well done to you all.

[Kintyre Candles]

I agree 100%....well done to all who helped anyone in any way. Awesome even.
One point I would like to make is that the very first to receive generators should have been Lorne Campbell Court, the nursing home & Auchinlea. I also wonder if some steps...maybe a few generators....could have been taken prior to the event? The storm was well forecast & though no one could have predicted the devastation that would take place I feel some measures could have been taken BEFORE the roads were blocked. Had they not been needed nothing would have been lost. Obviously it takes time to get things going & co-ordinated after the event & all involved moved swiftly. Just a thought? What do others think? Perhaps even gas heaters could have been provided for Lorne Campbell court, nursing home etc until power could be established?
I also wonder what happened to the generator that used to be in LCC?? I am sure they had one so power cuts could be dealt with.

[morenish]

My only "moan" about the whole crisis was a lack of info from SSE's phone helpline, but when I mentioned this to the guy who phoned me, he said "tel me about it, we were not being told either!"
Big THANKYOU to all the guys out there from all over the country who are here repairing the mess!

[Ags]

On a positive as I have said in other posts, brilliant to see the community come together and a MASSIVE thank you to the employees of SSE who have been out there working hard to sort us out in horrid conditions!
The printed flyer which came round the doors yesterday was great but should it not have been done a couple of days before it was? What good were Twitter and Facebook updates when we had no power, internet or mobile signal?? Also an emergency Campbeltown number was passed to me from a friend in Glasgow. I did not use this myself, but anybody I passed the number to got no response.
My main point for lessons to learn: COMMUNICATION

[april fool]

I think we've proved as a community we call pull together in a crisis, whether it was simply providing friends and neighbours with hot water and shower facilities or offering more extensive and specialised help.

However, the one point that seems to have struck a chord is distribution of information. I am not by any means criticising anyone here because there was plenty of information but given the unique circumstances where mobile phones and laptops and also telephones, for those with digital or chordless, were out of commission it was not readily available to everyone.

I would suggest for future emergencies that a central information point in the town be designated. With so many unused shops around would it be an idea to set up a simple information centre where posters or boards etc. could be displayed and everyone would know where to go for important messages. Also if it cropped up again that volunteers were needed they could report to the same central point from where they could be redirected to the area that needed their help. I had a gas hob and a car that I would gladly have offered the use of but I didn't know where to go to do so. I did supply hot water and soup but I could probably have been more useful.

If it was possible to maintain a premises on a continuing basis perhaps it could even be used to relay information on road closures etc. which do affect us on a regular basis if not quite as dramatic as last week! It could even be used to store simple emergency supplies that could be collected if needed. I'm thinking here on Monday night at the Victoria Hall when there was a basic need of plates and cutlery and no doubt many folk, like me, had a box under the stairs full of unused bits and pieces that would have come in handy if we had just been able to get it to the right place at the right time.

Although this week has been extreme I don't think we can ignore the fact that our weather is changing and we cannot assume that it's going to be another 30 years before we will be in this situation again !

Many thanks to all who have given so much time in freezing weather and extreme conditions and who are still out there working to get us up and running.

[MurkyLitFelon]

We're not out of the woods yet, so there will be plenty more lessons still to learn. I noticed that the mobile networks were down again in the toon yesterday, meanwhile on Arran there were 1,200 without power last night because of two unrelated generator faults.

Those of us that are lucky enough to be online this morning are on a network that was never designed to operate this way - so brownouts and extended blackouts will be commonplace for weeks, especially when 99% of the engineers have packed up and gone home.

The system has lower availability (we currently have 209 volts here) - and existing safety relays won't be configured or coordinated to be back-fed from intermediate points in the HV / LV networks. In some scenarios, a simple fault (or just too many kettles turned on after the match) will trigger a complete grid collapse whilst in other cases a more serious / genuine HV fault will go unprotected as the system just can't feed a sufficiently high enough fault current to trigger the relays. That could even mean a potential loss of life if you happen to be the car/truck/tractor driver that hits that particular part of the HV network.

And, assuming there are no further generator breakdowns or missed re-fuels, when those 132kV transmission lines are eventually repaired, the whole system needs to be taken apart again in order to switch back.

So, for me, five points matter.

1. Communication - it's been stated many times that this has been lacking, but in the case of severe or dangerous weather conditions, the focus shouldn't be on bringing people to the town when so many people could risk their lives simply trying to get there. An AM transmitter in the town could provide essential coverage of an emergency situation - which remains fluid.

2. Cut the trumpet blowing. If Argyll and Bute staff had put as much effort into relief as they did their facebook / PR page - then things would have been done far quicker and more effectively. It's even more annoying to be told 'don't worry about not having power for X days - please feel free to visit our catering van in Y' when the damn thing doesn't even turn up! Provide us with the facts, not PR.

3. Honesty. We're grown adults. Being told that 'sadly, a few people may remain off power overnight, if you're still off power at midnight, call tomorrow at 10am for an update' every night from Friday was a joke when everybody at the call centre knew (and they DID know - Hydro staff on the ground and at the call centre all admitted that) internal estimates ranged from one to four weeks. Why do you all think so many generators were being sourced and shipped over to Kintyre and Arran by ferry at the weekend... no-one was in any doubt as to the severity of the problem... Honesty is required, especially moving forward.

4. Relief efforts were mis-directed. The town had power 3-4 days before the rural communities - yet everyone was being told to go to the town! It took days for vague relief efforts (= a catering van) to reach the communities that needed them - I feel particularly sorry for the elderly / disabled or anyone without access to a car.

5. Ongoing, coordinated support. Over the coming weeks, for the reasons given above, there are going ongoing electrical supply problems both in the town and rural areas. In the meantime, some businesses will be on their knees - Easter is a busy time to be losing trade, farmers were in the middle of lambing / calving. Until the lights go on 'properly' - and even then after that - local businesses and farmers will need to know where to turn for support / funding / assistance.

[jdcarra]

Good posts and especially MurkyLitFelon who has mentioned most of which i would have mentioned.

Speaking for Carradale whom we went off at 10pm last Thursday evening.

The communications poor,lots of misleading info going about times we may be restored some or all power be it geny or grid.Losing all comms,mobile and landline is bad enough for the able,but a serious situation for the elderly and disabled.
I myself was on duty last Friday (Coastguard hat on) doing radio comms between Arran and Belfast Coastguard for over 6 hours,likewise many others.Vhf radio was our only means of assistance if a emergency occured and many did on that day,with helicopter medivacs from the island and mainland.

The food snack bar was another let down with being told on Sunday night it would be in the village for early Monday morning.Having broadcast this everyone was waiting at the location to find no burger bar.Having made some contact with the food company i was told they were not taking the vans up the Carradale Road as there was too many hills and bends .
Whoo great i said,then we can now say that the wood lorries and the tipper trucks will be stopping also.No,I shall not say what was mentioned by some of the staff the reason,and praise to them for all their effort and long hours put in. .

No time to go on a raise other issues,but one thing if this is going to be a ongoing happening with bad weather we need to get together a Emergency Contingent Group setup in each town or village,there no better news than from the locals involved than from a call centre miles away.

I have a mention and the SSE website on my own website http://www.the-carradale-goat.co.uk/

[speedygobackwards]

I would say the most important thing was information early on - the suggestion above about there being a point where people can go to get accurate information would be great. I know many people might not be able to get to such a place but then at least correct info can be spread from there.
I did find the council fb page etc helpful - but not until Tuesday when I got power back. Possibly too much reliance on sending info out through electronic means.
Likewise I noticed (on the council pages?) a suggestion that Argyll FM had a generator so that they could broadcast sooner - don't really think that would be worth it as I think not many people have a battery powered radio anymore!
I too had cooking facilities, a coal fire and a car, I would have been happy to offer help to people if I had known where to let them know about it - but then I didn't know whether I could get diesel or how much so I guess it all comes back to communication as early as possible.
But overall the emergency services and the volunteer workers have been brilliant, they deserve all our thanks.

[russanros]

4. Relief efforts were mis-directed. The town had power 3-4 days before the rural communities - yet everyone was being told to go to the town! It took days for vague relief efforts (= a catering van) to reach the communities that needed them - I feel particularly sorry for the elderly / disabled or anyone without access to a car.

I think thats unfair on the hospital staff and the volunteers who tried to help- yes would agree that communication was a huge problem but we & others were involved in getting soup & sandwiches out to people in Southend & Glenbarr on Sunday - obviously the penninsula is much bigger than that and so was the length of time people were off power - but there were people trying to help long before the catering vans appeared.

Some areas of outlying areas were back on power well before certain areas of town, Kilkerran Rd top end of Ralston/Tomaig was very late on coming back on, and the power was very hit & miss

If I can suggest something which has already been mentioned in other threads can we please stop treating the A83 South of Kennacraig as a backwater its a strategic route and needs to be maintained at least as well as the rest of the A83 - if the road had had the same team on call as for the rest of the Scottish trunk roads it could have been cleared sooner, the relief effort could have been quicker and bigger & better?

[MPR]

agree with the central location for info, last time this happened was waaaayyy back in the 60s, remember it fairly well, fishing boats went for supplies( not much of a fleet now) and there was a lot more wind this storm.
How about wind up am/fm radios. mine has rechargeable batteries that recharge when on mains, and can charge with a winder that's on the side, also has a built in torch that runs when you wind it. could listen to Argyll fm for info on one of those, great thing can be found online. Maybe a group could be set up to be in charge of centralizing all info and a place set up for the next weather or disaster situation. Would those that are elderly, disabled or otherwise disadvantaged be willing to have their names on a list that could be kept at the hospital, that way when there is a community wide problem they can be rapidly reached or contacted to make sure they are OK ( hopefuly by neighbours).

[Ship called Dignity]

For me, lack of information was key but on the other hand I can appreciate it was the weekend, the road was closed etc

I think if this happened on say a Monday then there would have been bigger resource to get information out with Council staff, for example, being used to resource this.

There really were a number of factors cumulating to go against everything. Weekend, lack of power, no radio, no mobile coverage etc which really factored in making this a really difficult situation. The use of Facebook and Twitter by the Council was a good step but had limited effect for those without power and of course the internet (not many elderly people are tweeting away these days you know...)

I'd say prioritising Tescos to open on Sunday above everything else was a tad insensitive. Firstly to the small local shops who bursted a gut on Saturday and Sunday to remain open and provide a service that Tescos weren't prepared to entertain on Saturday (please note the Co-op managed to open on Saturday ) and secondly to the old folks homes who remained without power on Sunday and in to Monday. I know there are probable factors on this decision that possibly out weigh the decision to supply elsewhere so it's difficult one. The emergency services, local hospital and community all busted a gut and huge praise should be heaped on them.

In many respects I took a lot of positives out of the 5 days with no power - a return to a lot of family values (board games etc ), caution to be better prepared for the future, how fortunate we are have to have power 365 days a year and above all the response of SSE. A lot of people forget what the weather was like on Saturday and watching the boats struggle in the loch as she tried to berth at 11.30 on Saturday evening made me realise how unpleasant the whole journey round the Mull must have been!

[LANDROVER ROGER]

Just a thought about retirement homes .Due to the vulnerability of the residents I feel that a "back-up" source of electricity and a gas bottle store should be part and parcel of getting planning permission.Not just for remote areas but generally.

[4th gen Suthen']

I was very impressed by the response from all agencies and volunteers involved...lessons to be learned of course but I dont see how things could have been handled much better.

Just to add a lighter note...I hope DA Meyrick was paying good attention for his next, Alastair McLean type, murder mystery....all the ingredients were right there!

[gray_marian]

In Reply to Ship Called Dignity, Hear Hear.

[Niander]

What if a storm such as this hit the whole of the uk?
scary eh...those with "real fires " are fortunate those without may consider opening them up!
I would say be wise and "be prepared" for the next one!