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When the PanAm plane fell out of the sky
on to the town of Lockerbie on December 21st
1988 there were no pre-existing plans for what to do with large
numbers of casualties, shocked and homeless people, or anguished
relatives. That was the
wake-up call for many local authorities.
For some years now Suffolk County
Council has been engaged in planning for an emergency. In East Anglia there are three major airports within a
hundred miles, there are major rail and road networks running through
Suffolk, there are ports and nuclear power stations, and there is
always the possibility of terrorist attacks on any of these
capabilities. Add to that the risk of flooding on the scale of the
1953 disaster, and you begin to see how important it is for detailed
plans to be made.
Not long ago I attended a training
day for clergy volunteers run by Suffolk County Council, which set out
some of the issues that could arise if there were some sudden tragic
event. Not a lot of
people know this, but on 7th July for example, clergy
volunteers were deployed all day at Manningtree Station, where trains
on the Norwich line were halted after the London bombings.
Train drivers who couldn’t get back to London, and distressed
relatives waiting for family members to return all had someone with
whom to share their worries until the situation could be sorted out.
A small event it’s true, but it goes to show what a
significant part the church can play.
Now we are being asked to give
information about the accommodation facilities we could make available
in our churches and church halls in the event of a major catastrophe.
Unlikely? Perhaps, but you have only to remember what
happened, or didn’t happen in New Orleans in September, because it
had not occurred to anyone to make plans.
As Rural Dean, I am also an
Emergency Team Leader (a team of one, so let’s hope nothing happens
just yet). I
have been asked to provide details of churches with their capacity, as
well as the number of loos, the kitchen/catering facilities, and –
if you can possibly tell me – height above sea level!
Some of you already have given me this, but if others would
also communicate this information, it would be useful and I can feed
it back to the planning authorities
Let’s hope it’s a task we never
have to put into action, but in today’s world, there is no longer
any excuse for failing to be prepared.
You all know the New Testament text which comes to mind!
b.b.bilston@open.ac.uk
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