Town Performs State-of-Emergency Drill

While residents are hoping 2012's fall will yield nothing close to October 2011's Winter Storm Alfred, which knocked out power for millions across New England for nearly two weeks, Windsor officials spent the past two days making sure they're prepared for a repeat performance of Mother Nature's best.

In a collaborative effort with the state and utility companies, Windsor officials — everyone from the department of public works, the health department, public safety and more — worked to examine the town's performance in 2011, and fine tune procedures where necessary.

Part of the emergency drill included a series of state-provided injects, during which the state provides a scenario — a partial building collapse, for example — and the town must provide a response detailing how the situation would be handled.

Among the issues needing to be addressed were staffing problems, according to Marty Maynard, Windsor's risk manager, who will serve as a safety officer in the event of an emergency. 

Avoiding a situation where volunteers have worked for too long, or ensuring there are an ample number of volunteers, particularly during overnight hours, is critical to the town's ability to respond to an emergency in an effective manner, Maynard explained.

The town is also expanding the space in town hall powered by an emergency generator. More rooms will be able to be used at town hall should power be lost for an extended period of time.