The mission of the Health Department is to provide routine health services to prevent diseases and emergency services in the event of a major outbreak.
During the initial set-up period of the gathering Health Department personnel have and will continue to provide:
Pre-event consultation and advice regarding sanitation procedures for organizers. This includes placement of latrines, operations of food facilities and water supply disinfection procedures.
Contact with local physicians to coordinate health services and provide information on what types of diseases may be encountered.
Coordination of ambulance services in surrounding towns.
During the actual event the Health Department will provide:
Twice daily walk-through inspections of food facilities and sanitation practices.
Health and sanitation information handouts for Rainbow leaders and those attending the gathering.
Coordination of emergency medical services in the event of major health emergency.
Major health concerns are food and water-borne diseases such as:
Salmonella - Bacterial illness which causes diarrhea or gastroenteritis, mild fevers etc. Develops 8 to 48 hours after ingestion of contaminated foods. Complications such as dehydration can cause serious illness.
Giardia - A parasite which causes diarrhea. The incubation period takes longer than with other diseases list here. Needs antibiotic treatment.
Shigella - A bacteria which causes abdominal pain, diarrhea. Needs antibiotic treatment.
Campylobacter - Bacterial type illness which causes diarrhea.
Note: According to Health Commissioner Jan Carney any large gathering of this type is a major problem waiting to happen. Many of the diseases are self limited or require 1 imited medical intervention. However, In the event of large-scale incapacitating
disease, it is likely that medical services could become overwhelmed. On the other hand, Health Dept. officials and the Rainbows have worked hard to minimize the risk of a large-scale disease outbreak.
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The Rainbows generally try to take care of illnesses on their own. It will be difficult for health officials to monitor small numbers of illnesses within the gathering. If people become sick enough to
get to outside health officials, those illnesses will be reported through routine health reporting System. Notification of state officials in this case will be relatively fast because of prenotification of area medical facilities and doctors by the Health Dept.
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CORRECTIONS
The mission of the Corrections Department in this instance is to provide secure lockup facilities to hold people who are detained
for illegal activities during the Rainbow gathering.
Contingencies exist based on several different scenarios which are outlined below.
The Corrections Department can handle without much difficulty 10 individual arrests over a week to ten day period. Normal turnover in the centers would provide adequate space for routine arrests made for violent crimes, drug, alcohol or theft crimes.
However, 10 arrests at one time will activate different corrections contingencies. In the event of mass arrests (10 or more) the department has the following options available:
60 non-violent people can be handled in Chittick Auditorium at the state hospital.
50 people can be placed in the Weeks building at the state hospital.
Between 20 - 50 violent individuals can be housed for no more than 48 hours in the gym at the Northwest facility in St. Albans.
A mass arrest of violent offenders is the worst case scenario facing corrections officials. In such a case, corrections security would be quickly stretched to the limit, and consideration of help
from National Guard in setting up a secure facility would be necessary.
Commissioner Patrissi advises that there is space on the Windsor Farm for the containment of a large number of angry or violent people, but the department does not have the resources such as
fencing and tents to house them.
Contingencies for erecting secure facilities in the event that corrections faces limitations require coordination with the Vermont National Guard.
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NATIONAL GUARD
The National Guard has alerted a limited number of personnel to the possibility that civil authorities may need assistance, if mass arrests are necessary at the Rainbow gathering. While the possibility is considered unlikely, contingency plans are available to have the Governor request military assistance.
The national guard has pre-designated supplies such as fencing, tents and materials for latrines should it become necessary to erect a temporary detention facility.
Such a detention facility would be:
Constructed of barbed wire.
Use tents for housing those arrested.
Have either port-a-toilets or latrines.
Have potable water available.
Have food available.
On short notice such a facility could not provide:
Lights
Running water.
Creature comforts.
General Tom O'Donovan advises that a temporary detention facility to house 100 people could be erected within a day.
Security of that facility would be the responsibility of Vermont civilian authorities. (Corrections, VSP, or contract sheriff' s deputies.)
However, it appears that to procure large scale assistance from the national guard, the Governor will need to declare a state of emergency.
Helicopter medical assistance has already been provided for and will be rendered under federal regulations in life threatening circumstances when a doctor is on the scene.
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HUMAN SERVICES
Secretary Con Hogan has appointed Steve Chupack of his staff to issue a briefing on a needed basis for the duration of the Rainbow gathering.
That briefing will cover the following areas:
Emergency ambulance calls.
WIC applications.
ANFC applications.
Requests for food stamps.
Requests for General Assistance.
Sanitation reports.
Lodgings at corrections facilities.
Unusual incidents.
Steve Chupack has been appointed Human Services coordinator for the duration of the event to provide information for other state and federal agencies. His number is 241-2223.
In addition, the Secretary has alerted officials from Mental Health and SRS to the possibility that their assistance may be needed in
the event of drug or alcohol related problems, runaways and protection of children whose parents have been arrested.
In regards to welfare benefits that are already being requested by members of the Rainbow family, Secretary Hogan advises that the agency will provide only that assistance as required by the law,
nothing more, nothing less.
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DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
DEPARTMENTAL
MEMORANDUM
Waterbury, Vermont
TO: Colonel Robert A. Horton, Director Commander
FROM: Major Lane Marshall - Support Services
SUBJECT: Rainbow Family Gathering, Rochester Area
Per your request please find the following as our intaxpretation of the actions taken in our division's support for the public safety function during the rainbow family gathering in the National Forrest in the Rochester/Hancock/Granville area,
1. We conducted site surveys of the entire area to determine the best methods of supply adequate telephone and radio coverage in the area of the proposed Terrain, multiple agency
jurisdiction, power limitations, location and total number of public safety personnel on site were but a few of the considerations necessary.
2. In order to obtain the best possible portable radio coverage we converted 150 Ib base repeater system to · portable mode and transported to a high location and place in a remote hunting
camp so that when out of their vehicles officers would have instant portable coverage with each other and the command post. in addition we altered the radio frequency so there could be no interruption in the coverage of these radios. Battery power was
used to power the repeater but batteries had to be changed frequently to ensure It was working.
3. We installed telephone lines into the mobil command post from the telephone company drop and set up the telephone service.
4. We had to install, and then reinstall the antenna system for the channel 2 primary radio frequency. After some level of poor performance we discovered the antenna war part of the problem for
reduced radio coverage but that an adequate 12 volt power supply was another. By morning of the second day we worked through problem and things began operating consistently
5. We installed two paths for data communication, (VLETS terminal). The first consisted of a hastily built arrangement out of spare parts which allowed us to operate the data set on
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