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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMaintenance and Disposition of Shelter Stocks 6.6.1972 • 4 • • TEXAS I)EI'AIITMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY 11,11.'o\ [ {. 'P1 i1t Division of Defense and Disaster Relief CD -12 n;tcct.)r State Coordinator. • • Date June 6, 1972 TO: Civil Defense Director FROM: M. P. Bowden, Deputy Coordinator SUBJECT: Maintenance and Disposition of Shelter Stocks Attached are two documents relating to the above subject. OCD.Form 74+7 is 'being distributed in proportion to the number of stocked shelters. In the event you have questions, please let us know. • • • • • 1 May, 1972 MAINTENANCE OF SHELTER STOCKS • General Federally procured stocks of food, medical and sanitary supplies, and water containers have been provided to local governments for over 100,000 shelters. It is estimated that .supplies issued could sustain 65,000,000 persons for up to two . weeks", should" the need arise. . r . The supplies in place and in local storage, are the property of local political subdivisions. which accepted ti responsibility for their care, maintenance and .inspection. No more supplies are available from OCD warehouses, and the purpose of this appendix is to furbish guidance concerning the .maintenance, inspection and .orotecti on of the materials Condition of Supplies . Most of the supplies are considered to have an indefinite - usable life, if properly inspected and maintained. However, �. special attention should . be given to the gradual deterioration of certain medical components as well as to the palatability of . shelter biscuits. Cbmponents of Shelter Medical Kits . - • Recent laboratory testing of sample components of the medical kits by the U.S. Public Health Service revealed that most of the components are suitable for use. However, two • • I • of the items were determined to be unsuitable for use the eye and nose drops, and the.kaolin and pectin mixture (liquid). Due to the deterioration of ingredients in the eye and nose drops, sediment and particulate matter were present in most of the samples tested. This would cause the drops to be an irritant to the delicate tissues of the eye. In view of the probably detrimental effect, the eye and nose drops should not be used for the eyes. The kaolin and pectin mixture (liquid) has undergone partial to complete solidification. No other changes in the product have occurred and usage, if possible, would not be harmful. However, in many instances the mixture cannot be removed from the bottle without breaking it. The net effect - is that usage is impractical. Nationwide, about half of the kaolin and pectin mixtures distributed were the liquid type. The balance were in powder form, and these: are in excellent condition, suitable for use. OCD will continue quality checks and testing of medical Q components on a sampling basis, and if additional products become unsuitable for use local civil defense will be advised. Cereal - Based Shelter Rations _ I Cereal -based shelter rations were procured under specifi- I cations anticipating a minimum shelf -life of five years. As f the current i nventc; ^y of shelter rations was procured in the a period 1962 to 1964, we can now expect to find evidence n 55 '3 deterioration. While the five -year shelf -life has expired, most of the rations are still usable, and it is possible that they may continue to be good for several Years. Deteriorating rations develop an unpleasant odor and /or E taste (rancidity) because of oxidation of the shortening, but their nutritive value is riot materially affected and they are not considered to be harmful. OCD will continue quality checks and testing of rations on a sampling basis, and if a more severe problem develops, local Civil Defense will be advised. OCD recommends that the rations remain in place for emergency' use as a supplement to other food supplies. However, planners should be aware of the fact that some of the rations may not be palatable if they have to be used The carbohydrate supplement ration has shown little or no evidence Qf deterioration. No time limit has been placed on its remaining shelf- life. Guidance on Ma : ntenance and P - otecti on Medical supplies should be kep ' i n secure locations, preferably locked in closets or other areas to which only a few trusted persons have access It is especially important that phenobarbital tablets b; removed from medical kits and either . destroyed, transferred to an authorized agency or locked up securely. • • ood rations should be kept it cool. (40 0 F. to. CO °F.) dry. storage. In the storage area, there should be a notice that, upon opening cans of Berea i -based rations, the contents should 't be well aired before use to di spe i i any rancid odor. Inspection ; See Part D, Chapter 2,. Appendix 9, of the Federal Civil Defense Guide. The fact that the supplies have been inspected and the stags of the supplies should be posted in the shelter so •;;hat shelter users will have the information. To assist in this posting, OCD has designed and printed a self - adhesive label (Figure 1) which is available to State and local ' governments. U\'S? ECiED THESE SHELTER SUPPLIES WERE INSPECTED THIS YEAR 8Y THE ,, GOVERNMENT. ' � I T FOR E,MER- - O:. \LCD — YOUR LOCAL THEY ARE FIT • I GENCY US I N ACCORDANCE WITH THE FOLLOWING GUIDANCE: I USE NOS: /EYE DROPS FOR NOSE ONLY. THEY MAY • HARM T i—E EYES. FOOD, USABLE, BUT CJTDA T ED . AIR THE CONTENTS AFTER OPENING CANS. . , PHENOBARBITAL REMOVED FROM MEDICAL KITS. • . . • e 3 7t S • OCD FORM 7=+7, JA ;. 1972 Figure • May, 1972 • DISPOSITION OF SHELTER SUPPLIES General From time to time, it is necessary to remove shelter supplies from buildings which are demolished . or for which licenses are cacel 1, d. It is recommended that these supplies be removed to other shelter facilities or placed in short term local storage if necessary.. It is clear . that this solution is not always feasible and the local political subdivision may decide that the supplies should be disposed of. The purpose of this appendix is to furnish guidance concerning several possible methods of disposa.. rse by Political Subdivisions It is appropriate that medical supplies be transferred to hospitals or clinics, but only after full notice has been given of their condition.. Prisons or - .. other institutions with medi- cal f a c i l i t i e s may a l s o make use of the supplies. I t should be noted that special instructions govern the dis- position of phenobarbital tablets. 'Phenobarbi tal is a " con t rolled" substance under the Comprehensive Drug .Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970. I f there are pheno- barbital tablets in the medical kits, request guidance regarding disposal of the tables from the Regional Director, Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (3NDD) , • • Department of Lustice. Your police department will knori • or be able to obtain the of the appropriate BNDD Regional Office. Hopsitals or prisons may be able to use items from sanitation kits Shelter rations and. wa er drums may be moved to .central locations as a general reserve for . possible use in the event of an attack or natural disaster. However, because regular food is generally made available • shortly after the onset of a natural disaster, it is un- likely that then:: would be ,such demand for the cereal- based shelter rations for this purpose. Drums in poor condition should be junked. Donations - Cereal-based shelter rations have been -used successfully in disasters caused by cyclones and floods in Pakistan, the Philippines, Colombia and else- r where. At a time when there was.mi.nimum drawdown on shelter supplies, the Office of Civil Defense made sub- -- . • stantial donations of these- supplies for foreign relief purposes. Local. Civil Defense agencies (where permitted by State and local laws) have made similar donations, • .generally in limited quantities to such relief agencies as CARE, Inc. Church Wor`; d Service and Catholic Overseas Relief 'Service. I t should be noted that agencies receiving such supplies for overseas relief ordinarily generate. Y requirements only in respect to a specific disaster which • • • 3 require:; prompt response. It is possible, however, that . an agency may establish requirements for supplemental feeains programs in a foreign land. Further information concerni ng these programs may be obtai ned from OCD Regi onal Directors . Donations of supplies, pa':t;cuta•rly medical supplies, may also be made to recognized char; Lable and relief organi zati ons for use wi thin the United States ; f such donati ons are in accordance wi tii State and local ordi nances . Feeding Cattle ar,d'Swine - It is sometimes practical to offer cans of cereal -based rat ;ons to cattle feedlots or to farms which feed swine for the market. In this • connection, the Agri culture Research Service , Department .� r- culture advised that there are approximately o� Ar, � c�:l ' 181,500 cattle feedlots , and that there. are over 21,000 l6cati ons feeding 500 or more swine. Ti. Service further advised that it is inecono ical to move rations long cistcraces since the cost of trarsporta ti on can well exceed the value of the contents of one food 'cans Incorporation of the food into the ration for 1 1vesLock for „a : short period of time Goes . not pose a nutri ti onal pro - bier,. The biscuits are composed 07 ;;rain with 'a Shorteni rag and are not harmful to cattle or swine. They may be added to standard feeding rations. • { • • Because the feedlot and swine feeding areas are rather small and scattered throughout the country and the supplies are also widely distributed, feeding• arrangements would be }' made 1 ocal ly. The user's methods for opening and dumping cans'wouid depend on the number of cans involved For -a fai rly large operati on, a_band saw coul d be used wi th con- veyor belts transferring the cans into the saw and from the saw to the truck where the contents could be separated from the cans. A simpler method more appropriate for smaller operations is to have the operator of the feedlot • open and dump individual cans mixing the contents wi th other elements of the ration.. Sanitary Land •Fills - In the event that users are not identified, it.would generally be economi cal to arrange for 'buri al of *cereal - based rations in sanitary 1 and fj 11 s . By . trucking small quantities on each trash collection day, there would be little or no additional cost to the community. In no event, however, should medical supplies be disposed of . in . this way. Incineration is a preferred method with the possi -. bility that some medicines could be disposed of through grinding. However, medical supplies should be disposed of only in accordance with. guidance to be furnished by local • health officials. These officials should be asked to furnish' suitable supervision or assistance in conducting the disposal Operations. • 5 Civil Defense Insigne - When shelter supplies are trans ferred to other than civil defense use, the civil defense' 1 • i insigne on the containers should be obliterated. It is recommended that this be done by painting or inking over the insigne. . Obliteration of the insigne is not necessary when the supplies .are to be removed from the containers and the ,. I container destroyed immediately after transfer to non- 1 - civil defense use Obliteration is also not necessary when the supp lies .are to be consumed or destroyed immedi ` ately after transfer; such as use for stock food or land fill. • • • • . . .