EMERGENCY PLANS

Press, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23353, 12 June 1941, Page 4

EMERGENCY PLANS

Conditions Described as “Chaotic” VIEW OF SCHOOL COMMITTEEMEN After listening to an address by the organiscr ot the Emergency Precautions Scheme in Chnstchurch, a meeting of the Canterbury School Committees Association last evening severely criticised the arrangements, which some speakers described a “chaotic.” The address was given to the meeting by Mr A. R. Galbraith, who outlined what was being done; but after it there was some sharp criticism, including a statement by Mr T. H. Langford that “he had sat on committees with some of these so-called clever men and they had not done a damned thing.”

The resolution finally carried was as follows: —"That this representative meeting of school committees views with concern the delay in putting into operation an emergency precautions scheme that will adequately meet the requirements of schools and districts, and that the organiser be supplied with the required assistance to enable him to have the scheme put into effect at the earliest possible moment.” Before Mr Galbraith arrived at the meeting the chairman, Mr R. S. H. Buchanan, read to the delegates a leading article from “The Press" of yesterday morning, which he described as “very informative,” and at the straightforwardness of which he said no one could cavil. . . . _ The motion was sponsored by Mr F. H. Dephoff, who said that 21 months ago members of school committees had tramped around their districts getting a mass of information for the scheme. Once got, that information had been shelved; it was now obsolete, and it was probable that the same men would be asked to go round and collect it afresh —and then it would probably be shelved again. Discussing anomalies In two pamphlets issued, h*lr Dephoff said that one told people to go to the schools for information. But who would be at the schools to give them the information? The other pamphlet told the parents not to congregate —which was exactly what they would be doing if they went to the schools. In one district he knew of, added Mr Dephoff, the local commander of the Home Guard was a headmaster. The deputy for him was a key man in the trams. If there was an emergency both would have to go to their jobs, and who would look after the Home Guard? He ventured to suggest that by the time all the men in essential jobs had gone to them in an emergency all who would be left m the Home Guard would be the halt and the lame. . „ Many Organisations After an executive of four, a committee of 13, and 11 other committees (some with sub-committees), there followed in the present set-up of the Emergency Precautions Scheme more than 51 other organisations, all to be co-ordinated. The result was a state of chaos. He was definitely convinced that Mr Galbraith had taken on an impossible undertaking. He was stuck in a little poky room at the City Council, and it seemed that the task was a little more than he could manage. ’ He should have a qualified staff of assislatMr W. Howley said that while he was grateful that Mr Galbraith had addressed the meeting he had told delegates nothing they did not know. Later in a discussion in which the organisation of the scheme was further criticised, Mr Langford said that he had “sat on committees with a lot of these so-called clever men and they had not done a damned thing.” But it was not the Government’s fault. It was the people’s responsibility, Mr Galbraith was a good theorist, but he had not had a chance to advance his theory to another stage because he had not been given a penny piece to do it with. He exhorted delegates to push ahead until something was done. Far too much had been written, with nothing of a practical nature done. He contrasted with results in Christchurch what had been done in Auckland and Dunedin. In further discussion, one member said that in the Linwood district one woman in charge of the arrangements had to. take over 11 schools as soon as an emergency broke out. She had, in fact, to be in 11 places at once. No one had suggested how that was to be done. History of Scheme Mr Galbraith in his address first traced the history of the scheme in the city, from its earliest beginnings in 1925 until just before the war. Until then the scheme was purely civil, designed to deal with such disasters as fire, flood, arid earthquake. The war brought to it a new set of problems and some complications, one of them being brought about by the forming of the Home Guard. However, a working arrangement had been made with the Home Guard. There were other national emergency organisations also interested, however, including women’s auxiliaries and territorials. With these new conditions the scheme was, to use an old word in a modern way, in “a somewhat fluid condition.” As members would have read in the leading article, the transport section, a very essential and vital branch, was in a very nebulous state and did not know where it was. It was hoped that the matter would be settled shortly by bringing to bear all the pressure that could be brought. The position had been worsened by the Army impressment of trucks. At present, while trucks could be impressed for military duty they could not be impressed for civil emergency work, a matter which had been taken up with the Minister for National Service (the Hon. R. Semple). The use of schools was an essential part of the present plan, said, Mr Galbraith. and the metropolitan area had been divided into districts, with each school, suitable by reason of Its construction, to be used as an advanced dressing station. Women’s Auxiliary

members in each district would staff these schools, and would first be trained in their work, so that they could advise people, for instance, how to deal with incendiary bombs. School committees were to be asked to appoint district wardens, men looked up to in their districts, who would have jobs of very great responsibility and in addition there would be air-raid wardens. Each district would be a civic unit, and if one district unable tq cope with its own problems needed help, the central headquarters would send help along from the nearest district. What was hoped was that a trial held in each district would prove to the satisfaction of the man in charge that the district scheme was working wen, find then a trial of the metropolitan scheme should be made. In fact, it had been seriously suggested that a trial should be held in the presence of the Governor-General, or some of the Ministers so that they could see for themselves what the work amounted to. ~ . One of the main troubles was equipment—such as that needed for dealing with incendiary bombs. Mr Galbraith discussed the effect of these bombs and ways of dealing wtlh them, and also the necessity for demolition .and rescue ©quads to deal with the results of hi£hexplosive bombs. He £lso mentioned the need for precautions against gas, and said that one of the difficulties was that it was not possible to import gasmasks for civilian use, although it was hoped to make them locally. A committee at Canterbury University College was working on this gas problem, in cpoperation with another committee m Australia and with the Home authorities. , The evacuation of the city was also discussed at length by Mr Galbraith, who said that although there were plans for it there was a lot to be said for dispersal rather than evacuation. The Port Hills were an excellent refuge, and it might be possible to use some of the caves at Sumner. Plans for evacuation were well Under way. Answering questions after his address, Mr Galbraith said that at the beginning of the war the Government had asked all cities to conform to the one plan sent out. Since then, it had done nothing. “What has been happening in the Home Guqrd has also been happening in the Emergency Precautions Scheme,” he said. “Some of the good men in it are getting a little disgruntled.” However, he added, things were more hopeful now.

In the long discussion afterwards members discussed such matters as school evacuation (it being stated that headmasters were to take charge of it completely) and the necessity or not for digging trenches at schools. A further resolution carried was that men from school committees should be added to the committee from the Education Board and the Headmasters’ Association to deal with school evacuations.