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Public health, Red Cross position shelters; officials give food and medicine-safety guidance
Summary
Columbus Public Health said shelters coordinated with the American Red Cross are ready for residents displaced by the storm and gave specific guidance: refrigerators can keep food safe about four hours without power and packed freezers about 48 hours; nurses and inspectors will staff shelters as needed.
Dr. Mashika Roberts, Columbus Public Health commissioner, said the department is supporting response efforts and coordinating with Fire and the American Red Cross "if there is a need to open a shelter." She said public health will inspect shelters and house nurses there "for a short period of time" to ensure people without power are safe and have any immediate health needs addressed.
Roberts offered specific food-safety guidance for residents dealing with outages: "a refrigerator, if it is closed, can keep food safe for about 4 hours without power" and a packed freezer can keep food safe "for about 48 hours" (about 24 hours if only half-packed). She also urged people to stay away from floodwaters and downed power lines and to contact health care providers if refrigerated medicines appear changed.
