It was confirmed today that another vulnerable senior citizen died from hypothermia following a utility shutoff. John Skelley lost his life several days after his natural gas supply was disconnected.
Hypothermia caused man's death after utility shut-off, autopsy finds
It was reported earlier that "there are certain circumstances under which the utility companies just suspend shutoffs...[including] when the state experiences extreme cold, like it has for several days in the past few weeks."
This begs the question: Just how extreme does the cold have to be in order for shutoffs to be suspended? Is there a specific temperature limit, duration, and/or forecast used? Is that information available? Why or why not? I'm not asking rhetorically--these are real concerns, given that multiple vulnerable senior adults have already frozen to death due to utility shutoffs in the state of Michigan.
Regardless of the answer, the fact remains that the system is a failure, as evidenced by those who have died under it:
Regardless of the answer, the fact remains that the system is a failure, as evidenced by those who have died under it:
2009: Marvin Schur, 93, Bay City
Electricity shut off Jan. 13th; body found Jan 17th.
"Marvin E. Schur suffered 'a slow, painful death' inside his home, said Dr. Kanu Virani, who performed an autopsy on the body."
Bay City, MI, low temperatures:
13 Jan 2009: 7 °F (electricity shut off)14 Jan 2009: -10 °F
15 Jan 2009: -9 °F
16 Jan 2009: -6 °F
17 Jan 2009: -2 °F (body found)
source: almanac.com: Bay City
2012: John Morgan, 86, Flint
Electricity shut off Feb. 17th; body found Feb. 20th.
"He's been in that house for over 60 years," she said. "If they would have just did a little check they would have seen that he was a senior citizen."
Flint, MI, low temperatures:
17 Feb 2012: 31 °F (electricity shut off)18 Feb 2012: 28 °F
19 Feb 2012: 21 °F
20 Feb 2012: -16°F (body found)
source: almanac.com: Flint
2015: John Skelley, 69, Detroit metro
Natural gas shut off Jan. 19th; body found Feb. 1st.
"69-year-old John Skelley was discovered unresponsive, huddled under blankets in front of a space heater"
Detroit, MI, low temperatures:
19 Jan 2015: 31 °F (natural gas shut off)20 Jan 2015: 25 °F
21 Jan 2015: 24 °F
22 Jan 2015: 18 °F
23 Jan 2015: 18 °F
24 Jan 2015: 15 °F
25 Jan 2015: 11 °F
26 Jan 2015: 11 °F
27 Jan 2015: 11 °F
28 Jan 2015: 13 °F
29 Jan 2015: 13 °F
30 Jan 2015: 15 °F
31 Jan 2015: 3 °F
01 Feb 2015: 14 °F (body found)
source: almanac.com: Detroit
The NOAA weather graph for the Detroit metro shows at glance that the daily low temperature dropped below freezing on the day Mr. Skelley's gas supply was disconnected, and continued to be below freezing each successive day until his body was found on February 1st.
In the MPSC (Michigan Public Service Commision) staff report, following its investigation of Skelley's death, they recommend that "Consumers [Energy] should identify ways in which the company can communicate with customers, beyond requirements of the rules, about the provisions of the Medical Emergency and how to postpone shutoff of service in the instances of certified medical emergencies." However, this still puts all the onus on the elderly customer, who may not be suffering from a medical emergency -- until an abrupt disconnection of utility service causes such an emergency!
Utility companies are playing a kind of Russian Roulette...What the utilities are doing in disconnecting vital utilities in the winter months is playing a kind of Russian Roulette. Except imagine the gun is pointed outward, at the customer's head. The probability of a live round being in the chamber is the same probability as that of a vulnerable adult living at the residence who the company is not aware of. The suggestion the communication be improved is a cynical, shameful way of saying, "We're going to fix this by improving the probability somewhat of a bullet not being in the chamber, by getting more folks to communicate with us in advance." What this "solution" ignores -- besides the fact the there is still a real probability of people falling through the cracks -- is that there is a way to eliminate the threat of wintertime utility disconnections causing death: check on whoever might be living at the residence! How hard is that to figure out? Otherwise, you're still playing Russian Roulette!
And why are they not checking on people when they disconnect service?
“When we do go to disconnect service, we go right to the meter now,” Dodd explained. “It’s much safer for our employees because of the possibility of, you know, threats of violence.”In other words, never mind possible risk to vulnerable residents, it's some vague possible threat of violence toward utility employees that they're worried about. That's apparently their excuse for not making contact to see if anyone vulnerable might be at home and ascertain whether the person can comprehend and be able to effectively deal with a potentially life-threatening loss of utility services.
Michigan isn't the worst...If you think I'm picking only on Michigan, that's incorrect. It's only by the grace of God that these deaths didn't happen in my home state of Minnesota, which has an even more shameful and risky "Cold Weather Rule", treating potentially vulnerable seniors no differently than anyone else:
1. Can my heat be shut off in the winter?The incidence of dementia among the elderly increases with age, but its onset can occur gradually or rapidly at any time, and can interfere not only with daily functioning, but also the ability to navigate complex "rules" imposed on an individual, including the ability to perform some daily activities such as paying bills. That appeared to be the case with 93-year-old Marvin Schur, who was tragically found frozen to death, with money clipped to utility bills sitting on his kitchen table as if he were attempting to pay. To imagine his struggle, consider that hypothermia can further degrade a person's ability to think clearly, as is well-documented in the medical literature.
YES, unless you take steps under the Cold Weather Rule (CWR) to protect yourself.
- You must contact your utility to apply for protection from having your heat shut off.
- This is true for all residential customers, including senior citizens and families with young children.
Many elderly people 'aging in place'...Most Americans would prefer to age in place, and, indeed, with the Baby Boom population reaching old age, there will be many more elderly people living in their own homes. It's critical that this population is well-protected and looked after.
As these three men bear witness to, their lives were recklessly terminated under pain and uncaring abandonment -- disconnect and dash! -- as the coldness of the grave was imposed upon them before they were even buried, much less ready to die.
