Looking for a Good Book?

The three of us here in Emergency Management are always looking for good books that bring emergency planning, response and recovery to life. We found just that in The Day The World Came To Town, a fantastic book chronicling the lesser known stories of passengers affected by the events of September 11th. The story follows the passengers of flights that were diverted and made emergency landings in Gander, Newfoundland on September 11, 2001. Gander is a small Canadian town with a population of around 9,000 residents. On that fateful day, 38 jetliners were directed to land at Gander "International" Airport, effectively doubling the population of this small town. When Gander became the recipient of these thousands of unexpected guests, its residents immediately rallied together and swiftly set up emergency shelters, opened their homes to complete strangers and offered the use of their vehicles, bedding and whatever else was needed. Local businesses emptied their shelves of food, supplies, clothing and toys. Pharmacists filled prescriptions from all over the world without cost. No call for assistance went unheard and no person struggled alone.
To put this in perspective, imagine an influx of over 6,000 unexpected people landing in the middle of Kelso at one time. How would we feed these people? Shelter them? Meet any medical and dietary needs? You can't answer every question with a resolute answer. That's the frustration with emergency planning, there is never a 100% correct answer that will work every time. That's why reading books such as The Day The World Came To Town help remind us not only as emergency planners, but as citizens that, while there is no perfect answer, there is the unexpected resolution that can never be written into any plan. With their hospitality, flexibility and quick thinking, the residents of Gander, Newfoundland have set a standard to which the rest of us should aspire to reach.