MANTEO, N.C. — A race against time in Manteo on Thursday as around 100 people gathered for a post-disaster simulation that forced community members to face the reality of what they might be facing when a disaster happens.
"I have gone through this process of having to rebuild your life and your home," said Robin Harris, who participated in the event Thursday.
Harris is the dean of Health Sciences at College of The Albemarle, where they have dedicated programs related to disaster response. For Harris, this experience was also a reality when Hurricane Isabel destroyed her home in 2003.
"I'd never want to go through it again, but I learned a lot about myself, I learned a lot about my community, I learned a lot about the need to give back when others are suffering," said Harris.
Dare County teamed up with Trillium Health Resources, which hosted the event. This was much more than classroom training — each person was given a packet and had to navigate the reality of what they could be facing during a disaster, all in real time and on a week-by-week basis.
"They'll be trying to gain food, they'll be trying to get gas at the fake gas station, they will try to get their mental health services, they'll try to get all of the things that you would normally try to find after a storm to take care of your basic needs," said Brooke Mickelson, the director of program coordination for Trillium Health Resources.
In a hurricane-prone area like northeastern North Carolina, this type of simulation can go a long way.
"We have a room full of people who some of them have experienced storms in the past, and then we had a good number that they've just moved to the area, so they've not really experienced that. So we want them to be able to take away a lot of really good information. There were a lot of resources that were shared with the group, and more will be shared, so they'll be able to really better prepare themselves and their neighbors, because we want them to think of their whole community. This is a very tight-knit community, and so we want them to make sure that they are taking care of their neighbors as well as themselves,” said Mickelson.
Drew Pearson, director of emergency management for Dare County, echoed that message.
"I give credit to our community too — They want to be here, they want to learn. We have new people in our community that have never experienced the storm that want to understand what that's going to be, but more importantly, we have people who have, that are here sharing those experiences with those that have just come to Dare County. It's neighbors helping neighbors, our community helping each other," said Pearson.
Each packet varied from person to person, but Harris' role was as a community member helping after a disaster. That opportunity reminded her how much her community was there as she rebuilt her life.
"The more you can give in these situations, I think on the back end you'll find that your heart was really touched that you were able to help somebody and that was really helpful for me today, because I could do that at least in a simulated way," said Harris.
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