STAYING SAFE AND WARM
Elders need helping hand in cold weather
By Esteban Fernandez Times West Virginian
FAIRMONT — The road out to Hammond or Valley Falls, Route 310, can be beautiful. But when the snow falls, its becomes downright impassible and becoming trapped by blocked roads is easy. It’s hard enough for younger, able bodied people to deal with the challenge, but for seniors it can be hazardous.
“The cold temperatures can be dangerous for anyone, but the elderly especially,” said Ang Romesburg, who manages a Facebook community group for residents living on Route 310 said. “They should stay indoors as much as possible. See these elderly neighbors and community members the way you would your own grandparents. Remember that not all of them have family to check in on them.”
Elderly residents face additional challenges when it comes to navigating cold weather, Romesburg said. A day or two before Sunday’s snowfall, Romesburg put out an alert to the community group asking residents to check in on their elderly neighbors. He also encouraged elders
to make requests for help and make themselves known, so that other residents can put themselves in a position to help.
One instance that stood out to Romesburg was an older husband and wife, who have fallen into bad health. The wife spent years volunteering at the community center when she was in better health. The husband needed help getting his car to the top of his driveway and assistance getting groceries into their home. They posted to the group, and within minutes of posting, Romesburg said, multiple people started responding to their query.
“Two young men — and by young I mean one of them is actually a senior in high school — assisted this couple,” Romesburg said. “This is just one example but our community has in the most literal sense jumped to help when it’s been asked.”
Leisha Elliott, executive director of Marion County Senior Citizens Center, said frigid weather events are already challenging for everyone to manage, but when one adds age and mobility issues, the difficulty compounds. Snow that an elder can’t clear off of a sidewalk or steps that get covered in to ice, which could then lead to a debilitating injury.
There’s also the danger of not realizing how cold it is outside, which can become dangerous to someone who has dementia.
Elliott recommends community members check on their elderly neighbors and offer to pick up groceries or prescriptions if one is going to be out to run errands anyway. Even if an elder has no plans to go out, shoveling their walkway would still be important in case of an emergency, especially if EMS needs a clear path to get to their house.
“I just recommend that people have the necessary equipment that helps,” Elliott said. “So make sure you have a broom and snow shovel handy. Some kind of salt so you’re able to treat sidewalks. If you have a neighbor with mobility issues, don’t even ask, just go ahead and maybe clear off their sidewalks and steps.”
While meal delivery programs do exist, the service can be hampered by unplowed roads and weather conditions. That’s why it’s also important to ensure seniors have enough food to get through a storm or cold snap, she said. Marion County Senior Citizens provides both in-center meals, as well as food delivery in Fairmont and Marion County. Meals on Wheels also makes deliveries.
Elliott said her organization tries to plan ahead with weather events and send people home with extra meals. She said the FirstEnergy Foundation made a recent donation that allowed the Marion County Senior Citizens to purchase shelf stable meals, which are being distributed across the county.
Making sure a house is habitable is also important.
“I would say, make sure their heat is working properly,” she said. “I think space heaters can be a benefit in some cases, but can also be dangerous. With colder temperatures, there’s always the chance of pipes freezing. Maybe a senior doesn’t get through their house easily, so there might be rooms that they don’t frequent very often, pipes could bust and they would have no idea that had happened.”
Romesburg said it was important to be mindful of the things younger people take for granted. Getting to a mailbox in the snow might be annoying but doable for a younger person, for an elder it escalates to a dangerous undertaking. Isolation can be just as harmful. He said where he lives, it took over a week to clear the back and side roads.
“Have you ever thought what it may be like for someone who doesn’t have as many to reach out to, and no one reaching out to them,” he said. “Someone who lost their spouse and only has their weekly grocery run to look forward to. The elderly have struggles many of us easily overlook. Truth be told we probably owe them more of our time but in times like this we absolutely need to we check in on them.”
Reach Esteban at efernandez@timeswv.com
With all of the recent snow and plummeting temperatures, Marion County seniors may need more assistance than usual.
PHOTO BY ERIC CRAVEY