Hurricane horror

[watermanMD]

Any fun, or horror, stories from those who have worked past hurricanes? This will be my first as an attending. Any tips before I go in tomorrow?

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[Dred Pirate]

Any fun, or horror, stories from those who have worked past hurricanes? This will be my first as an attending. Any tips before I go in tomorrow?

Chance of getting stuck in the hospital? if so.
Bring enough clean clothes for a week in case you get stuck.
Hospital shouldn't lose power unless you pull a New Orleans and have the generator in the basement, but can't hurt to bring a few extra external batteries for phones and stuff because the red emergency outlets can often be full and being used for important things like ventilators and coffee machines.
But treat it like a camping trip, bring things to do during downtime/off shift time (books, cards, etc).
Maybe some of your favorite snacks or sodas if food choices are limited. I have had my share of red cross meals, they aren't bad when that is your only option, but can get a little boring.

 

[wysdoc]

Any fun, or horror, stories from those who have worked past hurricanes? This will be my first as an attending. Any tips before I go in tomorrow?

Bring extra clothes and a stash of food/protein bar stuff.
The hospital will be running on its emergency generator if power goes out, but it doesn't serve every single part of the hospital.
If power lines are down or streets flooded, your relief doc won't be able to get to the hospital to take over from you!
I was on call for 3 nights in a row during my intern year in Houston.

 

[GTBuzz]

I worked Hurricane Ida last year and was stranded at my hospital for a few days. Knocked out power but generator worked, no running water, no phone service, no internet. Everything was paper charting.

Then came back home to New Orleans which was without power for days in the midst of the summer hear.

Home
Make sure everything is locked down, anything outdoors that can be taken by the wind tied down, unplug electronics, stock up on water, fill up tubs with water (can be a reservoir in case you need water to wash/bathe), charged batteries, lights, if you have multiple vehicles - fill up on gas, food.

Work
Bring a few sets of clothes/scrubs, small bathroom bag (soap, deodorant, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste), snacks, water, chargers, full tank of gas, a small pillow or blanket in case you have to stay at the hospital for a few days. I personally didn’t bring anything to pass the time - just hung out in the ED when I wasn’t working to help pass the time but maybe a good book or cards or board game.

Be safe and good luck!

 

[NYEMMED]

Sliding doors in the ED can get pushed open by strong wind

 

[RustedFox]

Sliding doors in the ED can get pushed open by strong wind

Seen this happen once or twice.
Was bizarre to see.

 

[Pudortu]

Bring Wet Wipes. It may be the only way to take a "shower" for days.

 

[RuralEDDoc]

Drive your SUV or other lifted vehicle to work. It’s a bummer to survive a hurricane and then get stuck in your Honda Civic 20 miles outside of town.

 

[Siggy]

I had to do a 24 hour shift and a 36 hour shift during residency for hurricanes.

Bring a change of clothes or two.

Bring snacks.

Bring your own pillow, the hospital pillows suck.

AC normally doesn't run off of the backup generator, so I was completely seeing patients in gym shorts and a scrub top immediately afterwards.

 

[2010houston]

Bring your own sheets / towel (if your call room has a shower). Don’t depend on linen services to be changing things. If you’re the “second team in” (ie relieving a colleague after storm has passed), you may well have a dirty call room and you’re not exactly first priority. Bring extra scrubs, food, water , toiletries as discussed above.

 

[turkeyjerky]

This thread is rather alarming. You guys deal with this type of thing every 2-3 years? What redeeming qualities does Florida actually have?

 

[Janders]

This thread is rather alarming. You guys deal with this type of thing every 2-3 years? What redeeming qualities does Florida actually have?

Publix subs. Key lime pie. Cuban food. The weather December-March is lovely.

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

Publix subs. Key lime pie. Cuban food. The weather December-March is lovely.

Publix goes as far north as Virginia. SC has colder winters but our summers are not utter misery.

Coastal SC especially makes some damn fine key lime pie.

You got me on the Cuban food.

 

[CoolDoc1729]

This thread is rather alarming. You guys deal with this type of thing every 2-3 years? What redeeming qualities does Florida actually have?

Don’t tell HCA, or they’ll make all the programs 4 years and say they include a “disaster medicine fellowship”

 

[Apollyon]

Publix goes as far north as Virginia. SC has colder winters but our summers are not utter misery.

Coastal SC especially makes some damn fine key lime pie.

You got me on the Cuban food.

Well, as has been said about Columbia, "if you want to find hell, go to Columbia, because it's built right on top of it" and "100 degrees and 100% humidity 300 days out of the year". In the Upstate (the northwest corner of the state), in 2006, there were 16 days in July over 100 degrees. I had a seasons pass to Carowinds, and that made it just untenable to go.

And I love SC.

 

[VA Hopeful Dr]

Well, as has been said about Columbia, "if you want to find hell, go to Columbia, because it's built right on top of it" and "100 degrees and 100% humidity 300 days out of the year". In the Upstate (the northwest corner of the state), in 2006, there were 16 days in July over 100 degrees. I had a seasons pass to Carowinds, and that made it just untenable to go.

And I love SC.

You'll note that I didn't say it was good, just not utter misery like Florida summers are.

 

[benem]

I had a friend who was in New Orleans when Katrina struck. Her hospital luckily never flooded. She honestly said that it was a very boring time in the ED because so few patients present during a hurricane. Of course you get a couple, but minimal compared to normal. I think the biggest risk is dealing with trying to transfer patients if you don’t have certain services. I can’t imagine trying to transfer someone mid-hurricane with something your hospital can’t handle. One suggestion I would make is to park your car(s) in the hospital parking garage if you can. You might avoid a ton of damage.

 

[Vandalia]

A few things come to mind:

I ended up in charge of an Air Force hospital during a hurricane. It was a decent one, although not near Katrina/Andrew category.

Everyone was given the opportunity to evacuate. One of the senior officers in a staff position was the hospital commander at Homestead AFB (Miami) during Hurricane Andrew. He said never again and left at the first opportunity. No one questioned it: It is sort of like the old Marines and Samar: "Rise gentlemen! He served on Samar!" You were on the ground for Andrew? Do whatever you want.

The problem was that the installation commander said that "non-essential personnel" could leave several days before the hurricane hit. In addition, not surprisingly in retrospect, the food suppliers did not make their usual deliveries. Keep in mind that for a hospital, laundry and food service are "essential personnel."

So the hurricane hit, all is fine, except no clean linens (an on-site laundry, but the people who knew how to use it were long gone and there was a backlog even before the hurricane hit), and rapidly dwindling food for everyone else.

The good news was that my wife was a veteran AF spouse. She gave me a bucketful of change before I left, saying "You might need this." So there were a few coin-operated washers and dryers. "Congratulations! You are now part of the laundry crew! Put the coins in, use a lot of bleach, and get washing." The same with food. Of course a hospital has to have a lot of junk-food vending machines. Again use the coins, and ration out the Doritos. It was a lot easier spotting the government $100 in quarters than having to deal with the paperwork of breaking/disabling the machines.

One of the other issues was that families were allowed to shelter in the hospital. However, they had to be self-sufficient. The parents did a good job with food and diapers, but they forgot anything to keep kids occupied for 72 hours. Imagine a horde of kids who have been staring at the walls for 72 hours. I am told it was getting to Lord of the Flies territory ...

We also got a call at the height of the storm from a man who said he was cut by glass and was bleeding to death. So an ambulance crew volunteered to go out and get him. Picked him up, and he had a cut that could easily be treated by a bandaid. He decided to stay, got scared, and used his "bleeding to death" to get out of his house. The ambulance crew, me, and his chain of command were not happy ....

So bottom line:

1. Laundry
2. Food
3. Keep the kids entertained
4. It is all different once you have been through a real hurricane. Once that eye-wall hits, people get scared. And the ED solves everything ...

 

[smq123]

This thread is rather alarming. You guys deal with this type of thing every 2-3 years? What redeeming qualities does Florida actually have?

The last big hurricane that came towards south Florida (Miami/Ft. Lauderdale) that was really scary was Hurricane Irma in 2017. That was 5 years ago. Tampa hasn't had a real hurricane scare in....over a decade? Maybe two decades?

You have to remember that the news says "HURRICANE HEADED TOWARDS FLORIDA," ignoring the fact that Florida is a fairly large state, and a hurricane that threatens Pensacola is far from a hurricane that threatens Jacksonville which is far from a hurricane that threatens Miami. There are always a few new-comers to Florida who forget this and run to Wal-Mart to panic-buy hurricane supplies, when the hurricane is actually 6-7 hours away, on the opposite coastline.

Hurricanes scare me way less than wildfires or earthquakes, because there is ample time to prepare and think through a reasonable plan. With weather tracking the way it is, you usually have (at least) 5-6 days to figure out which course of action to take (evacuate if possible, or hunker down).

The winters here are nice. The beaches are nice. There is a lot of natural beauty here, and if you're into outdoor watersports (kiteboarding, wind sailing, etc.) then it's a good place to live. Parts of the state that are on the beach are also relatively cheap and affordable. There are lots to hate about it, but that's true of all states.

Also - Florida isn't the only place prone to hurricanes. Parts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi/Alabama - they are all also prone to hurricanes as well.

 

[Dred Pirate]

Also - Florida isn't the only place prone to hurricanes. Parts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi/Alabama - they are all also prone to hurricanes as well.

ironically the three US cities most likely to get hit by a hurricane are in NC

Ranking of Cities Hit Most By Hurricanes & Tropical Storms - HurricaneCity

Ranks 139 locations in the Atlantic basin that get affected most by hurricanes and tropical storms. (includes Caribbean)

hurricanecity.com

It is just that florida has so much coast line in comparison that the state has a whole is more likely to get hit. The outerbanks just stick out there and are very easy to get isolated on if you don't evacuate.

 

[smq123]

ironically the three US cities most likely to get hit by a hurricane are in NC

Ranking of Cities Hit Most By Hurricanes & Tropical Storms - HurricaneCity

Ranks 139 locations in the Atlantic basin that get affected most by hurricanes and tropical storms. (includes Caribbean)

hurricanecity.com

It is just that florida has so much coast line in comparison that the state has a whole is more likely to get hit. The outerbanks just stick out there and are very easy to get isolated on if you don't evacuate.

Getting hit by a hurricane on OBX scares me more than getting a hurricane while in Miami. Modern building codes after Andrew were better; some of those older buildings in OBX do not look very sturdy. That’s ignoring the fact that a two lane road is your only evacuation route.

 

[Dred Pirate]

Getting hit by a hurricane on OBX scares me more than getting a hurricane while in Miami. Modern building codes after Andrew were better; some of those older buildings in OBX do not look very sturdy. That’s ignoring the fact that a two lane road is your only evacuation route.

yup- very much apples to oranges - there is a reason they evacuate the OBX if anything of substance is approaching. Only a small hospital critical access hospital and 2 bridges connecting you to the mainland. Several times new inlets are cut essentially making new islands with no road access - and even then, you could be 50+ miles to the nearest healthcare. You do not want to need emergency care there in a hurricane.

Heck in Wilmington during Florence the level 1 trauma center was med evacing people out to other cities because they didn't have supplies and were overwhelmed. And there was no passable roads for days out of the city.

 

[RustedFox]

This thread is rather alarming. You guys deal with this type of thing every 2-3 years? What redeeming qualities does Florida actually have?

Been here since 2012. Pennsylvania boy by birth.

PROS:
- Endless golf, fishing, watersports, and plenty of other outdoor recreation. Surfing. Parasailing. Ziplines, Mountain biking (yes), you name it.
- SPRING TRAINING BASEBALL. I get to see SO many teams all come and play within 2-3 counties.
- The weather is gorgeous with the exception of summer (see below).
- Publix subs ARE legendary, as is a lot of the other food.
- A governor that actively trolls the federal government for their hypocrisy.
- Absolutely gorgeous beaches, mangroves, the Everglades, etc.
- A good-ol' boy "can-do" attitude. The "entitlement/perpetual victim" crowd is quickly laughed away.

CONS:
- Snowbirds. See: "RustedFox Rants: Snowbirds" (Part 1 and 2). They have to be some of the most toxic people on earth.
- Humidity. Learn to get rid of all your cotton clothes, including your 10 favorite tee-shirts. I haven't worn jeans in 10 years.
- HCA and USACS have a stranglehold on the ER landscape, though we'll see what happens with this in light of so many different factors.
- The months of May thru August are a sweaty, wet, nightmare.
- "A Florida Man..."
- Hurricanes (though on this; the gulf side of the state - they tend to be few and far-between. That being said, Hurricane Ian is on a direct collision course with my neighborhood right now).

 

[smq123]

- Hurricanes (though on this; the gulf side of the state - they tend to be few and far-between. That being said, Hurricane Ian is on a direct collision course with my neighborhood right now).

Stay safe! The storm surge will be pretty gnarly, for sure.

 

[wholeheartedly]

speaking of hurricanes and FL man…





But seriously, stay safe folks.

 

[Kryptocoin]

Been here since 2012. Pennsylvania boy by birth.

PROS:
........
- A good-ol' boy "can-do" attitude. The "entitlement/perpetual victim" crowd is quickly laughed away.

That must be the reason Florida is ranked #1 in the nation for fraud.

 

[Janders]

That must be the reason Florida is ranked #1 in the nation for fraud.

Yeah spent many a year in FL. I met absolutely plenty of entitled and perpetual victims there. And plenty of awesome people of all stripes. Its a massive, diverse state and with the amount of tourism, travel, and general migration I wouldn’t try to put a singular finger on it…

Also Key Lime Pie

And that thing where you wake up and walk outside at 0600 and everything is just covered in humidity and you do the backstroke down your driveway to go on your morning jog.

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

I’m biased because I grew up in Florida but I love it here. It’s not for everyone, it’s certainly an acquired taste.

But it’s really a special place. The outdoor activities and lifestyle are hard to beat. And for all the people saying summer sucks - summer is lovely. The snowbirds leave, the days are long, water activities are plentiful, all the activities have discounts because it’s the slow season.

The Florida man trope is real, but they’re entertaining and while bizarre generally harmless - much like alligators.

And the storms are fun. You prepare, weather, and clean up - Florida is built for hurricanes since Andrew and the construction here can really take a beating.

 

[Arcan57]

Be prepared to be stuck in the hospital longer than you'd think. I tried to make it out after my shift just as the feeder bands from Harvey hit and had to turn back realizing I was probably going to die trying to get home. I ended up being stuck in the hospital for 4 days. If your surrounding area is flooded, you're not going to get many patients but you also aren't going to be able to discharge anyone either. We had a peds DKA we had to manage.(no pediatric capability upstairs). We had to airboat in an ortho for an open knee.Be prepared for a flood of dialysis patients as most of the chains claim to have comprehensive disaster planning but in reality few of the centers will be on-line whether from damage to facilities or inability to get staff in.

 

[bravotwozero]

Been here since 2012. Pennsylvania boy by birth.

PROS:
- Endless golf, fishing, watersports, and plenty of other outdoor recreation. Surfing. Parasailing. Ziplines, Mountain biking (yes), you name it.
- SPRING TRAINING BASEBALL. I get to see SO many teams all come and play within 2-3 counties.
- The weather is gorgeous with the exception of summer (see below).
- Publix subs ARE legendary, as is a lot of the other food.
- A governor that actively trolls the federal government for their hypocrisy.
- Absolutely gorgeous beaches, mangroves, the Everglades, etc.
- A good-ol' boy "can-do" attitude. The "entitlement/perpetual victim" crowd is quickly laughed away.

CONS:
- Snowbirds. See: "RustedFox Rants: Snowbirds" (Part 1 and 2). They have to be some of the most toxic people on earth.
- Humidity. Learn to get rid of all your cotton clothes, including your 10 favorite tee-shirts. I haven't worn jeans in 10 years.
- HCA and USACS have a stranglehold on the ER landscape, though we'll see what happens with this in light of so many different factors.
- The months of May thru August are a sweaty, wet, nightmare.
- "A Florida Man..."
- Hurricanes (though on this; the gulf side of the state - they tend to be few and far-between. That being said, Hurricane Ian is on a direct collision course with my neighborhood right now).

The hot months are really May through September, but I digress.

You ever eat at this Breakfast place called the Frog pond? Awesome food, went there when vacationing in St Pete beach.

 

[RustedFox]

The hot months are really May through September, but I digress.

You ever eat at this Breakfast place called the Frog pond? Awesome food, went there when vacationing in St Pete beach.

No, but I will boast that the B&L joint around the corner from my home is five - star Oh My God good.

Update:

House lost 3 screens from the lanai.
We never lost power.
Lost cable/web for a good bit.

Back to work tomorrow. Hospital is in rough shape, I hear.

 

[PrincessSnow]

I worked in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. It was very hot. We had no water pressure= not able to do dialysis. Generators on ground flooded and generators on roof ran out of fuel. No back up power = ambu bag vent dependent patients for about 18 hours straight, unable to reach providers in hospital if something can up until they came around, had to run IV pumps and tube feedings based on free flowing drips since no power to run pumps for these. Had to carry patients up seven flights of stairs in the dark stairwells to get on helicopters to evacuate. I was stuck there a whole week until I was able to get on a helicopter my self with one small belonging bag in my lap. When I was finally able to go back to get the rest of my belongings someone had already dug though my property probably to see what could be stolen if they found anything of value. Lucky I was in a closed unit without all the patient family members (there were a lot of family members in the hospital). Tips would be have plenty of water to drink, something that you can use if you need light. Something to be able to wipe down with to feel as fresh as you can in this situation. A good tip also that my department did was we took bedside commodes and put a bag in it each time we used it and disposed of our own bag after we were finished since the toilets were all backed up (odor control). I have worked several hurricanes since this one and none can compare so it is not likely that I will have to do this again in my lifetime.

 

[RoyBasch]

I worked in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. It was very hot. We had no water pressure= not able to do dialysis. Generators on ground flooded and generators on roof ran out of fuel. No back up power = ambu bag vent dependent patients for about 18 hours straight, unable to reach providers in hospital if something can up until they came around, had to run IV pumps and tube feedings based on free flowing drips since no power to run pumps for these. Had to carry patients up seven flights of stairs in the dark stairwells to get on helicopters to evacuate. I was stuck there a whole week until I was able to get on a helicopter my self with one small belonging bag in my lap. When I was finally able to go back to get the rest of my belongings someone had already dug though my property probably to see what could be stolen if they found anything of value. Lucky I was in a closed unit without all the patient family members (there were a lot of family members in the hospital). Tips would be have plenty of water to drink, something that you can use if you need light. Something to be able to wipe down with to feel as fresh as you can in this situation. A good tip also that my department did was we took bedside commodes and put a bag in it each time we used it and disposed of our own bag after we were finished since the toilets were all backed up (odor control). I have worked several hurricanes since this one and none can compare so it is not likely that I will have to do this again in my lifetime.

Man that's pretty crazy.

 

[watermanMD]

Current situation is no running water. ER flooded but we’re now back in it. We’re ****ting in buckets. Hospital is evacuating and inpatients being transferred—surrounding facilities now at capacity. They still have our ER functioning as usual and we’re still “admitting” patients, only for them to be transferred/evacuated. Some of my partners are practicing as usual admitting chest pains with negative trop’s, which is crazy to me, but I guess what we’re being told from higher ups. To function as usual. I’m practicing medicine like we’re actually overwhelmed and in a disaster, bc we ****ing are, and discharging everyone who’s not actively dying—stuff I’d never d/c in a million years. It’s crazy. Patient and EMS stories are insane. Lots of the docs and staff have had homes and vehicles devastated. Have been working nonstop. Wild times.

 

[Birdstrike]

Current situation is no running water. ER flooded but we’re now back in it. We’re ****ting in buckets. Hospital is evacuating and inpatients being transferred—surrounding facilities now at capacity. They still have our ER functioning as usual and we’re still “admitting” patients, only for them to be transferred/evacuated. Some of my partners are practicing as usual admitting chest pains with negative trop’s, which is crazy to me, but I guess what we’re being told from higher ups. To function as usual. I’m practicing medicine like we’re actually overwhelmed and in a disaster, bc we ****ing are, and discharging everyone who’s not actively dying—stuff I’d never d/c in a million years. It’s crazy. Patient and EMS stories are insane. Lots of the docs and staff have had homes and vehicles devastated. Have been working nonstop. Wild times.

My prayers are with you, your family and your coworkers. Keep the faith. Hopefully it will be over soon. And thank you for what you do.

 

[bravotwozero]

No, but I will boast that the B&L joint around the corner from my home is five - star Oh My God good.

Update:

House lost 3 screens from the lanai.
We never lost power.
Lost cable/web for a good bit.

Back to work tomorrow. Hospital is in rough shape, I hear.

I hope to God you’re ok man. Category 4 is no joke.

 

[dchristismi]

Frog Pond is da bomb. I love that place.

I went in the day after Irma after getting chainsawed out of my neighborhood. My director said "come in when the winds are down to 45 mph or less or we call." Place was a madhouse. During the actual storm the department was dead. Afterwards however, the board was the craziest I had ever seen. The days prior to, the track was so unpredictable, people we evacuating in all directions and no one remembered their inhalers, and had all their cats in the cars, and all the pharmacies were closed and somehow, we were dispensing inhalers. No clue. Hurricane rules mean all the rules are different.

This time... ah, this time I was conveniently off the continent. Talk about a well-timed international vacation! That is, perhaps, the best advice I can give, but it's pure luck. We didn't see this one coming, but we'd lashed the kayaks to the dock (which was built for a 100 year flood, but is underwater anyway.) We still had to ask family to move the patio furniture, etc, but we got lucky in that our power was only out for a very short time and only lost a few screens. The yard is a disaster, but it's nothing compared to the flooding several of my residency friends have faced. Since I've been out of the country and out of the loop, I expect to hear more soon.

My son-in-law's mom lives blocks from the beach in Ft Myers and she and her mother evacuated to our place seeing as we weren't using it.

I interviewed at Orlando Regional right after Charley/Jeanne/Ivan and remember asking about the blue roofs I'd seen from the plane. As a midwesterner, I didn't really put 2 and 2 together, nor realize how traumatic the prior month(s) had been. Now, however...

Hang in there Waterman
Those "I" storms are a b!tch.