Coast Mountain News Thursday, October 13, 2011
$1.00 + HST Vol. 27 | No. 20 Thursday, October 13, 2011 011 1
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Terry Fox Run 2011
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Serving the Bella Coola Valle Valley eyy and the Chilcotin
It's harvest time at Rick and Donna Ratcliff's farm. Rick operates the tractor and digger to get at a row of beautiful red potatoes with the help of CSA worker Andrew. Stop by their roadside stand for up to six different varieties of potatoes!
Flood effects in Bella Coola: Impact on health BY CHRISTINA BOUCHER Residents of the Bella Coola Valley experienced an emergency event due to flooding that officially lasted from September 23 to 25. The effects of that event, however, are much more long-lasting for many people. The flood event of 2011 was a painful reminder of the 2010 flood in the Valley, which had a devastating effect on the lives of residents who experienced
damage to their homes, businesses, and surrounding land. Additionally, this year’s flood caused a wave of distress and anxiety for many people who are still faced with clean-up from 2010. “It’s normal for people to feel stress and anxiety in the face of traumatic events like the flooding,” commented Carole Clark, Mental Health Department Manager at the Bella Coola General Hospital. “I’d like to see
it become more normal for people to seek supports sooner for that ongoing stress and anxiety.” Due to realities of dealing with flood clean-up, pursuing compensation through insurance or government agencies, or managing other issues related to the loss of personal or business items, stress could be having a detrimental effect on your health. Everyone responds in a different way to stressful situations; therefore, everyone has
different health needs. Research shows that the effects of experiencing a natural disaster such as a major flood can have long-lasting effects that continue for months or even years. In some cases, symptoms may not even begin to appear until months or years later. Stress can occur from good events (such as a wedding or starting a new job) or bad events, but it becomes a prob-
lem when we are unsure of how to handle an event. The first stage of stress involves the body’s mobilization of energy: you feel your heart beat faster and your breathing get faster as the body releases adrenaline. This reaction leads to what most people call the “fight or flight” mechanism, and helps a person to get moving
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