Bristol Had The 5 P's Covered

As I sit at this late hour and reflect on the events of the past day with Hurricane Sandy, I can't help but recall the words of my former high school principal, dear friend, mentor, and former Town Council chairman, the late Mr. Anthony Iasielo: "Remember the 5 P's: prior planning prevents poor performance."

While our town fortunately "dodged a bullet" without suffering the damage which was inflicted on some other communities around the state, it was evident that the town of Bristol was prepared to deal with the worst possible scenario.

Our town's Emergency Operating Plan — developed by our Fire Chief Bob Martin in his capacity as EMA director, Chief of Police Josh Canario, and executed under the direction of our extremely capable Town Administrator Diane Mederos in
her capacity as director of Public Safety — put to the test, worked seamlessly.

Mederos, department heads, staff and Town Council leadership met on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, participating in statewide emergency management conference calls and reviewing our emergency operating procedures.

Just after midnight early Monday morning , teams of fire, police and Department of Public Works employees were strategically staged in areas of the town, prepared, trained and at the ready. The calls for downed power lines and trees, some on fire, as well as calls for police and emergency medical assistance were handled flawlessly.

Our Harbor Master's office made sure all boats were removed from town docks, checks were made on all boats remaining in the harbor, and thrill seekers were cautioned away from docks and the waterfront.

Once again, as on so many past emergency situations, our Fire-Police division of the Bristol Fire Department was out on traffic diversion details freeing up our police department to rapidly respond to any calls for assistance and to preserve the peace.

Our shelter volunteers capably cared for residents who heeded the warning to evacuate identified flooding areas.

Just after 11 p.m. as the wind subsided and the sky cleared, fire department volunteers were headed out to pump out flooded basements.

If there is only one downside to this chapter in our town's history, it is that as fortunate as we were in hoping for the best and being prepared for the worst, time will show that this will develop ambivalence, compliancy and a false sense of security the next time another potential situation with severe consequences presents itself, but doesn't materialize into what could have been.

The residents of Bristol should be thankful and proud, as I am, of our employees and volunteers for a job well done.

Mr. Iasiello would have been proud that we had the 5 P's covered, and so much more.