Reaching over the language barrier

JAMES CITY - Last September, a water main broke in James City County, possibly contaminating the water supply of 17,000 residents. For three days, locals were ordered to boil their tap water, or not use it at all.

That same week, Gloria Morales said she was alarmed to hear of Hispanic families using the water to cook, or mixing it with their babies' formula.They weren't intentionally violating the boil order, she said. They just didn't know.

"All the information available was only in English," she said.

Since then, Morales, coordinator of the nonprofit Network for Latino People, has been working with local authorities on an emergency preparedness plan for the Hispanic community in the Williamsburg area. The Hispanic population in Williamsburg, James City County and York County is estimated at about 3 percent of the total population, according to U.S. Census data.

While local emergency responders have been receptive to the plan, Morales said many didn't know how to reach non-English speakers, or realize that language could be an issue in a disaster situation.

"When we think of people with special needs, we think of people with disabilities, or even with pets," said Jan Tobias, a volunteer with Lutheran Disaster Response. "We don't necessarily think of people that are non-English speaking."

To help the Hispanic community be prepared, Morales has translated emergency information into Spanish, and placed Spanish-language brochures in places already familiar to the Hispanic community, such as the James City County Human Services Center.

Morales identified 12 apartment complexes in Williamsburg, James City County and York County with large concentrations of Hispanic residents, and found people in each who agreed to help notify their communities in the event of a disaster.

She's also worked with James City County District Fire Chief Bob Ryalls to ensure that future emergency notifications go out in English and Spanish on local public television and the county's Web site. Ryalls said two Spanish-language radio stations have also been added to the county's list of media contacts for emergency bulletins.

Next week, a version of this year's hurricane preparedness guide for James City County, York County and Williamsburg should be available in Spanish. "Having seen Dean go across the Caribbean, we want to make sure that's in the process of being distributed," Ryalls said. There have also been efforts to make language less of a barrier by ensuring interpreters and translators will be available in the event of a disaster. Network for Latino People launched a Community and Medical Interpretation Services program in July, which provides 15 trained bilingual English/Spanish interpreters for use by hospitals, law enforcement or community groups.

Local emergency personnel have also made the effort to become more familiar with Spanish. James City County police officers took a basic Spanish class for law enforcement, and carry cards with them that translate common phrases, police spokesman Mike Spearman said. James City County's fire department completed 16 hours of conversational Spanish training and are looking into further instruction at Thomas Nelson Community College, Ryalls said. A group of Williamsburg firefighters and medics are currently taking Spanish classes at Thomas Nelson, according to District Chief Jim Murphy.

"It's important to be able to converse with them in their own language," Ryalls said. "It's been very beneficial for our operational staff." Still, there have been obstacles. A workshop planned to educate the local Hispanic community about emergency resources was canceled this year when no one showed up. Morales said distrust and fears about immigration status keep many in the community from taking advantages of services. "That was part of my agenda, to explain, 'Don't be afraid,'" she said.

Ryalls said emergency information - in any language - is only as good as people's commitment to put it into practice. He said once organizations make the information available, it is up to citizens to get themselves and their families prepared. "We want to put the message out," he said. "We want them to know what to do in an emergency. Because we know the ability ... to respond to every call that comes in is going to be delayed."