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Times-Advocate, 1996-01-24, Page 13Do you remember the storm of 1971? Chris Skalkos TA staff lunches. EXETER - On lan. 26, 1971 Southwestern Ontario was hit by a Not knowingwhen the storm would subside, but realizing vicious snowstorm that crippled Exeter and surrounding there was not enough food on the premises to feed over 300 : communities leaving hundreds stranded. children for more than a day, he made a phone call to the General At the time, residents said it was the worst Store in Crediton. As luck fiould have it, there was a : snowstorm in 25 years. Others said it was the worst "We were milk and a bread truck in C�redlton waiting out the storm. in memory. isolated, so it was The two drivers attempted to transport their cargo of • The storm came out of Montana and raced across groceries to the school following closely behind a really hear nice to • Lake Huron at 100 m.p.h and rammed inland at 70 snowplow and assisted by a group of men on m.p.h. dumping 24 inches of snow before ending that voice from snowmobiles tagging along to aid anyone who became three days later. the outside" Highways covered with snow as fast as snowplows could clear them but crews soon surrendered when drifts piled up as high as 12 feet on some roads. The OPP set up roadblocks to prevent motorists from leaving urban centres and becoming stranded on rural roads. The blizzard struck mid-morning and came without warning catching, many off guard leaving children stranded at their rural schools for nearly three days because of snow -blocked bus routes. Twenty-five years later, Don Finkbeiner of Crediton remembers the storm of '71 vividly. Finkbeiner was principal of Stephen Central School and said the blizzard came on so quickly it snow - stayed the entire student body. Finkbeiner said it was a dull and overcast day but calm. He was about to get in his car to pick up the mail as was his custom every morning, when he was preoccupied for a moment. When he returned to finish his mail errand he was stopped dead in his tracks at the front door...Finkbeiner couldn't see his car, which was only a few feet away in the parking lot, through the blowing snow. Realizing the severity of the situation, Finkbeiner addressed the students at noon saying they were going to pretend they would have to stay the night and asked them to only eat half of their A view packed Exeter. of Main St after the storm. The three-day blizzard 70 m.p.h. winds and dumped 24 inches of snow on stuck. They finally made it to Stephen that afternoon taking an hour and a half to cover the two miles from Crediton to the school. According to Finkbeiner, watchipg the convoy arrive was a beautiful sight. "I was sure glad to see them come in," he said. "We were living off of sandwiches and milk but no one went hungry." In turn, the truck drivers and snowtnobilers decided to stay at the school overnight and they were welcomed by staff and teachers who had the task of keeping the frightened students occupied. "Now we had some extra adults to help supervise the kids. All of the kids couldn't sleep at the same time and the teachers couldn't stay up all night to watch them," said Finkbeiner. There were also two nurses at the school. They were there to conduct a dental brushing program and were among the teachers and students stranded. "It just so happened they were scheduled to be at Stephen that day," said Finkbeiner, adding he was glad to have them in case someone became ill or injured. As a precaution staff kept physicalactivity to a minimum. "If someone broke a leg what would we do?" said Finkbeiner realizing emergency vehicles would not be able to access the school. Finkbeiner said the scariest part of the three-day ordeal was the risk of losing hydro that flickered on and off intermittently. Without electricity, there would be no light, heat or toilet facilities. Al Taylor, principal of Usborne Central School found himself in a similar situation. Teachers and 320 students were marooned at the school but were saved from going hungry when local snowmobilers delivered sandwiches, milk and hot soup on their sleds. "They brought food out when it fee storm] was at its worst. Through their efforts, we were fed," said. Taylor. Despite the zero visibility, a total of 53 local snowmobilers risked their lives to transport provisions to,the schools while some assisted police by covering the entire area to ensure no one was stranded inside their vehicles or on foot. They aided five adults and transported four children home. The OPP credited snowmobilers for "saving the day" and Exeter Town Council published a "thank -you" in the Times - Advocate the following week, recognizing their bravery. Lloyd Roeszler, from Crediton was one of the snowmobilers who assisted the emergency convoy to Stephen Central. "We were all downtown on our snowmobiles when we heard the students would be stuck for the night. I remember riding (a one cylinder skidoo) with a case of instant soup between my legs and I couldn't see a few feet in front of me," he said. Roeszler said they were,afraid but no one hesitated when it came to helping. "We were all young guys back then and [helping others] was something you would always do." Glenn Kells, road supervisor of the Exeter Works Department, said crews had to bring in an extra snowplow, bulldozer and grader to help dig out the mess and many roads remained closed for days as they concentrated on opening up Main Street and emergency routes. Tow trucks were brought in to haul stranded cars away so plows could clear roads and some cars were completely buried with only their aerials showing. Over 2,000 tonnes of snow was removed from Main Street alone. Fortunately no fatalities occurred. Vic Dinnin, a South Huron District High School teacher had a close call when he became disoriented and got lost in the storm while walking home. OPP dispatched a snowmobile search party to look for him when he was reported missing, however, Dinnin was found safe after he took refuge in an abandoned pick-up truck. Looking back, Finkbeiner admits they were lucky and schools have learned from the experience taking a pro -active approach by stocking up with emergency supplies in November and returning them in the spring if not needed. The blizzard of '71 will go down on record as being one of the worst storms in South Western Ontario's history, but what local residents seem to remember the most is not how much snow fell, or how cold it was; but rather how the community rallied to help others make the most out of a bad situation. PUC workers labored around the clock to restore hydro to homes left without heat, the Exeter Legion housed several stranded people, local residents offered accommodations to nearby high school students, area stores donated whatever food they had for snow -stayed school children and snowmobilers risked their lives to get it to them. Taylor recalls how nearby residents would phone the school every two hours just to see if they were all right. "We were isolated so it was really nice to hear that voice from the outside," he said. Taylor admits he wouldn't want to go through it again, but in a way it was an uplifting experience. "People became very neighborly and the spirit of giving assistance was evident everywhere," he said. "It's amazing how the worst brings out the best in people." South Huron District High School students had to walk to Main Street to board school buses as Gidley Street was still closed. Many students found accommodations among nearby residents while they waited out the storm. VON week celebrates services Brenda Burke T -A staff HENSALL - Jan. 21 to 27 is Victorian Order of Nurses week, a time to raise awareness of services provided to patients both in their homes and in the community. With VON offices located in Hensall, Stratford and Listowel, Huron and Perth Counties have access to nursing and palliative care as well as a mental health program. Perth County also offers a day program for Alzheimer patients and a volunteer visiting program. VON is a non-profit organization funded by a com- bination of service organizations and private dona- tions. It offers 24-hour, seven -day -a -week health care covered by O.H.I.P. and often works with post- operative and terminally ill patients in their homes by setting up medication systems, conducting intravenous therapy and monitoring health. Beginning in 1992, volunteers have been trained through the Palliative Care Volunteer Program during eight-week class sessions every fall, usually held in Dashwood. It costs $300 to support and train each vol- unteer in how to deal with the terminally ill and their loan Bennett, a VON staff nurse, at left, and Mary Morley, the district nurse for the Exeter arty work out of the organization's office in Hensall. families. Following referrals, the program's co- ordinator, Deanna Brock, matches patients with vol- unteers. Approximately 15 to 18 families in South Huron are now using the program, which includes one-year bereavement support. Although Perth County also offers VON foot care clinics, Huron County concentrates on pri- vate services. "There's a lot of people offering foot care," said Mary Morley, the district nurse for the Exet- V/O er area, adding this service, which has just been promoted during the past six months, is some- CANADA times offered to patients along with general nurs- ing tare. Nurses alto assess patients' needs for other services, such as diabetic help and post and prenatal support. "Now they're in the hospital for a short time," said Patricia Campbell, a VON staff nurse in Hensall, re- ferring to new mothers. There is a current emphasis on teaching family members how to care for patients at home in an effort to encourage independence and reduce costs, especial- ly during winter when it may be more challenging for nurses to make their rounds. "There are big changes coming up with the way we do business," said Janice Hayter -Oke, a VON super- visor in Hensall. 'There is more pressure to reduce the amount of monies we're spending...We certainly (have) to teach and deal with acute problems in a shorter (amount) of time." According to Hayter -Oke, more "acutely ill patients are coming home," from the hospital to recover and "more and more patients are choosing to die at home." South Huron requires a team of six to eight nurses each day to service the area. Hensall's office has a to- tal of 16 staff nurses, including three full-time and nu- merous casual and pan -time employees, many of which are also employed by hospitals. Nurses also par- ticipate in volunteer committees that gather input from offices in both counties. "We work as a team," said Jean Bennett, a VON staff nurse and publicity committee member in Hen- sall. Although much of VON's services are contracted out by the Horne Care Division of the Ontario Ministry of Health, which manages patient re- ferrals, the organization also works with private clients including Veteran's Affairs. Most re- ferrals are made by doctors and although VON nurses are known to care largely for the elderly, they also work with other clients. "VON services assist people to cope with their health problems, enabling them to remain independent at home, doing the things that are most important to them in life," reads a recent press release promoting VON week. The mission statement of VON's Perth -Huron branch is "to provide quality cost-effective community health care and support services to individuals in Perth -Huron Counties." Traditionally consisting of registered nurses, during the past five years VON has also included registered practical nurses (registered nursing assistants). The organization has worked closely with the provincial department of health while at the same time keeping its own identity. It began in 1897 and established six branches with 12 nurses across Canada. There are now 33 VON branches in Ontario alone. Celebration events are planned for VON's national 100th anniversary next year. "We will be starting to promote our 100th getting closer to our year end," said Bennett. Besides the publishing of a newspaper supplement that outlines the organization's history, programs and memories of past clients, an educational workshop for the fall of '97 is in the works. Also, with the help of area horticultural societies, peach -colored roses will be planted possibly as early as this spring, with pro- ceeds donated to VON.