FEMA grant aids Voorhees emergency shelter - The Tand D.com
DENMARK – A Federal Emergency Management Agency grant recently allowed Voorhees College to install a backup power generator to support a special needs medical shelter it operates during crisis situations in conjunction with the state Emergency Management Division.
The $84,000 grant paid for the generator and its transfer switch as well as the installation. The generator can be used to send power to Voorhees’ Leonard E. Dawson Health and Human Resources Center, which can be converted into the Voorhees Regional Special Needs Medical Shelter in times of emergency.
“This has a major impact,” Voorhees President Dr. W. Franklin Evans said. “This assists Voorhees College in being a hub for the region. In the past, we had to go elsewhere for emergencies.
“We are a viable entity here in Denmark. Now, no one has to leave Denmark during emergencies.”
Willie Jefferson, Voorhees facilities manager, said, “This location has already been authorized as a general operation center since Hurricane Floyd. This generator allows it to be used for special medical needs.”
He added that the building’s HVAC system can run on the generator and that it’s enough to power the entire building.
The generator has a fuel capacity of 265 gallons, said Howard Van Dijk, hazard mitigation specialist with the S.C. Office of the Adjunct General Emergency Management Division.
“The generator is designed to operate on a continuous basis (during an emergency) with the fuel supported by Bamberg County,” said Stuart Crosby, preparedness planner for the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The shelter can be set up within four hours of an announced emergency, Crosby said. A plan is also in place to add the gymnasium as a shelter location if more space is needed, he said.
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