The Great Columbus Day Storm
The Columbus Day Storm of 1962 was, by far, the most destructive storm that ever hit the West Coast.
And because, to reach Portland, the storm had to funnel its force between two mountain ranges, our city was pounded hardest of all.
The physical damage could be quantified: Two dozen killed by flying debris or falling trees, millions of trees blown over, most buildings severely damaged, water mains and sewer lines uprooted, thousands of miles of electric wires snarled. But the disaster probably lives on so vividly in collective Oregon memory because it came with no warning. Or, no warning that made sense — at a Lloyd Center shop that sold barometers, a clerk later recalled that “those barometers were doing strange flip-flops. We couldn’t figure it out.” (“The Big Blow,” Ellis Lucia, pg. 9) Mid-century weather-forecasting technology had a long way to go.
In Portland, the day was calm and cloudy. Then, as the afternoon rush hour began, the gray October light changed to a muddy yellow-green glow that some Midwesterners were startled to recognize from experience in tornadoes. And the wind began to blow, up to 116 miles an hour, recorded on the Morrison Bridge. (Higher numbers might have been recorded, but many weather instruments were simply torn apart.) But statistics capture nothing of the scale of this disaster. It requires stories.
One woman leaving work tried to walk to her car, but was blown against parked cars. She fought the wind, reached her car, and drove home through an unrecognizable landscape of falling trees and flying rubble. She almost gave up, in front of a tangle of sparking electric lines overhead — but she realized the skein was swinging back and forth, back and forth, and she could time the highest point and scoot under. She was lucky. She made it home. When a school on a hill let out, the wind blew the children off their feet; so a chain of adults lined the path down the hill, handing each child from adult to adult. A department store’s display windows blew out, sending well-dressed mannikins tumbling down the street; some people saw them as bodies. A man stayed in place by nailing his jacket to a windowsill, as his house broke apart around him. On the Ross Island Bridge, cars rocked in the wind and a truck tipped over against the railing. Roofs flew through the air, towers crumpled, ships tore from their moorings and floated free. Strong wind puts the lie to human beings’ belief in their own importance.
The next day dawned clear and bright on a hellscape. Chain saws roared all day and into the night. Neighbors pulled together, with whatever food, shelter, and camping equipment they had. Many waited weeks, or even months, for power, running water, or sewer to be restored.
Merilee Karr, Team Lead, South Burlingame NET
The Great Columbus Day Storm... revisited
On Sunday, October 8, Friends of Portland NET organized and facilitated the fall City-Wide Disaster Exercise. Most commonly the scenario is a major quake but this time they took experiences and lessons learned from the Columbus Day storm and replayed some of the scenarios and a few more to see how Portland NETs would fare... well, if there had been NETs back then.
57 NET volunteers participated city wide drill representing 53 neighborhood teams. Seven members of the Hillsdale team participated. We were presented some very interesting scenarios to deal with: downed power lines, gas and water main interuptions, a brush fire, a child trapped in a vehicle, an overturned school bus, multiple injured casualties and a resident wanting their roof tarped. All human casualties were "on paper only" with no actors playing the parts.Volunteers reported back what triage and care they would report for these "casualties".
We learned some valuable lessons from the drill. For instance, in the school bus scenario the bus driver is in charge at that scene and must follow protocols to protect the children in their custody until authorized first responders (not volunteers) respond and assume charge. We also learned that, were this disaster to happen again now, the City would preemptively shut down all city power early to minimize the hazard of downed power lines. City power would not be restored until all downed power lines were determined repaired or safe.
We had the blessings of daylight, near perfect weather and many hands on deck prepared to deal with the situations. We cannot count on any of these factors in a real disaster.
Here is how the drill progressed. These are a few pics from the Great, almost-Indigenous-Peoples-Day storm of 2023.
The call went out and the team assembled after the safety and security of families of volunteers was assured.
Strike teams were assigned and sent out to do search and rescue. The Incident Team Lead and Scribe/Deputy send strike teams off.
Incident command tracks who is doing the "what, when, where" of the search and rescue. Here is what the radio lead does to assure safety of the volunteers, condition of the casualties and other urgent issues such as property damage, hazards (downed power lines, fires, water main and utility failures) and other urgent needs.
Documentation is critical. It protects the safety of the team, status of the casualties & infrastructure, the missions and reports up to Emergency Communications Center (Portland Bureau of Emergency Management) to determine where resources need be directed as they become available. Documentation
is invaluable in the management of the current disaster, as well as,
lessons learned for future disaster management.
The mission assignment to the Strike Team must be clear. Do the most good, for the most people in the shortest time possible. First, protect the safety of your team. Ask for additional help.
The Strike Team typically reports back by radio. When they report back to the staging area, they hand off all documentation.
When Strike Team reports back to the staging area there is a regroup. "Did everyone return safely ?" Take a break. Time for water, a bite to eat, pee/poo, debrief, volunteer/team self care, help collecting ones self.
When the drill was winding down (and everyone was getting just a bit too comfy) there was the opportunity for the dreaded "knot practice".
When the drill was called the team gathered in a nice, shady area for the "hot wash" where all discussed what they feel they did well, what needed work and what would be valuable in the next NET drill.
Before breaking down the staging area and storing all for the next drill or for a real disaster, the NET volunteers gathered for a team pic. For the purpose of this drill we had a combined Southwest NET team representing Hillsdale, Maplewood, Hayhurst, Bridlemile and others.
We gathered later for a "warm wash" at a local watering hole. Thankfully, there were no photographers present.
A question...
If this had been a real disaster, your family was safe and secure, and you decided to come help out, what knowledge and skills would you have been able to contribute ?
Be sure to read the next (Winter) Hillsdale Neighborhood Emergency Team (NET) newsletter. Or if you are just too excited to wait and want to offer to help now, drop an email to
hillsdaleornet@gmail.com
If you do not live or work in Hillsdale, we will point you toward your Portland Neighborhood Emergency Team.
posted by Friends of Hillsdale Neighborhood Emergency Team @ October 16, 2023
