What is Y2K?

THE MILLENIUM bug isn’t nesting behind your couch.

"It isn’t laying eggs in your broom closet, either.
The “bug’* is s computer problem that arises when some

“Computer clocks go from the year 1999 to the year 2000.

The millenium bug, or Y2K, occurs when a computer
chip doesn’t know what year itis.

Since the ’60s, most PC-based computers have expressed
dates as a six-digit field, for example, a computer sees M
arch 24, 1999 as 03/24/99, .

~The problem is, computers will read March 24, 2000 as
03/24/00. Many computers won’t be able to distinguish be-
_ bween the year 1900 and 2000.

Therefore, they won’t be able put dates in a historical
context, and may become confused, fail to function or mis«
calculate information,

The worry is that if the Y2K bug isn’t dealt with before
the new year, critical infrastructures like stoplights and
Sewage systems may fail, personnel and academic records
could be invalidated, Securily systems could malfunction,
and billing systems may miscalculate information,

eat Se

DAVE MARONEY of Terrace Equipment Sales says
smaller size generators like this one are still avail-
able, but the big ones needed to power a whole
house or business are hard to find,

Generator sales peak

MILLENNIUM bug fever has already hit some Terrace
Tesidents, ;

Dave Maroney, owner of Terrace Equipment Sales, said
the demand for generators has been growing since last
September. ot Bete,

i We've always. had. them in, stock. until last .fall,’? .he...,
said. He explained that after the ice storms in Quebec last:
winter, people here wanted to make sure they had their
own generator.

The fear of the millennium bug, has only increased
demand, Maroney said, ,

He has 24 people on a waiting list for 3500-watt and
5000-watt generators, ones large enough to power a house.

“There looking for back-up power,”’ Maroney said,

He said he’s got a large order in for $2,000 generators,
but demand is so great, there’s a backlog. ‘'They got be-
hind a year ago and they haven’t caught up,’’ he said.

He said he only gets a few in at a time because distrib-
utors are trying to keep all the dealers happy.

Personally, Maroney’s not worried about the millennium.

‘He’s not planning on buying a generator but he did say
he’l] have a bigger pile of wood prepared for the new year.

No leave for RCMP

TERRACE RCMP Sgt. Darcy Gollan said in preparation
for year 2000, officers won’t be allowed to take time off
from Dec, 31 to April 1, 1999.

All officers will be on duty during this period, Gollan
said, to deal with any unforeseen incidents.

“You have to have reserves available in the event that
things do go wrong,”* Gollan said.

In 8 worse case scenario, power, water, and all other
computerized systems would shul down.

Gollan said RCMP have to be prepared to deal with any-
thing that could arise from the potential global shutdown.

“It’s something we have to plan for because there are
people out there that will take advantage of fear,” he said.

Terrace RCMP are currently working with other agencies
in town, like the fire hall, the ambulance and the city, to
make sure everyone is coordinated should the power go off
for a prolonged period of time.

Gollan said RCMP have already tested the detachment’s
emergency generator. RCMP are also making sure there is
enough water and food in reserve in case Terrace is cut off
for days. ,

Banks not worried

BANKS in town are expecting business as usual leading
up to the millennium,

Jim Stewart, customer service manager at Royal Bank,
said he’s heard rumours of people in Vancouver who plan
on withdrawing all of their money before the year ends.

But in Terrace, he said people aren’t as paranoid.

He’s not expecting local residents to withdraw their life
savings.

“However, there’s always going to be people a few
people who take precautions,’’ Stewart said.

Since financial institutions don’t have much cash on
hand anymore, Stewart said banks would issue bank drafts
or moncy orders in lieu of cash to customers wanting to
withdraw all their money.

Personally, he’s not going to take out any extra money
come the new year, .

He said he doesn’t have any concerns about the baking
industry going haywire.

Corrine Thompson, customer service manager alt TD
Bank, said she expects Jan 1, 2000 to be like any other
day.

We know the problem isn’t going to be a problem,”
she said,

She has complete faith in banking technology.

“We have all of our information backed up daily, so it’s
not like we’re gaing to-lose information if something does
happen,” Thompson said, She hasn’t had any inquiries
from people concerned about withdrawing funds.

The ultimate exercise

The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, March 31, 1999 - AS

Terrace’s emergency coordinator hopes Year 2000 bug fears will

make us better prepared for disasters that are harder to

By JEFF NAGEL

WHILE SOME people beef
up their computers, stockpile
food and prepare to barricade
their homes against invaders
on the eve of the millennium,
one Terrace man is actually
looking forward to Y2K.

Randy Smith isn’t out to sell
computer software or genera-
tors.

Tertace’s fire chief and emer-
gency coordinator is selling
safety and if computer bug
hysteria presents an opportunity
to preach that message, that’s
fine with him.

“‘] think this is great,’’ Smith
says. “‘Il’s an emergency
preparedness coordinator’s
dream come true. People are
look at their contingency plans
and posing the question: ‘What
if?* ‘3

While Y2K poses real — though
many expect over-hyped — risks, it
is also entirely predictable.

; People know exactly when it’s |

going to happen.’
And that makes it the ultimate ex-
etcise,

“T don’t think the sky’s going to .

fall, but people should be

prepared,’’ Smith says.

The most likely potential disaster
from the Year 2000 bug is a loss of
electricity.

That’s also a mishap that could
happen anytime to the north.

“We could have an ice storm or a
snow storm that could cause that,’
Smith notes,

Other possible disasters — which
would come when we least expect

What should average citizens do
to ensure they’re prepared?

Smith says everyone should al-
ways be prepared to survive in their
homes without outside help for a
period of 72 hours until emergency
crews can arrive.

That means having extra canned
goods and dry goods socked away
ai home, maybe extra water, and a
buffer of extra cash in case bank

“| think this is great. It’s an
emergency preparedness
coordinator’s dream come true.”

them — are a train derailment or
dangerous poods spill, an
earthquake, or floading,

So Smith is putting emergency
plans into action, setting up opera-
lions centres, testing lines of com-
munication and ensuring teams of
volunteers and coordinating agen-
cies are ready to go,

city operations run smoothly, and
the other coordinating emezgency
services, RCMP, the airport, the
hospital and Terraceview Lodge.

machines don’t work,

Smith also wants to get a neigh-
bourhood preparedness program
going.

That would encourage people to
find out’ about the needs and
resources of others on their street.

A home of seniors who need as-
sistance would mean a neighbour

He’s also active on‘two different -;Would take-extra care to make sure

‘¥2K committees — ‘one’ ensuring they’re’okay.in an cihergency.

Or the neighbour with a generator
or wood stove would make sure
others on the street knew they
could come by and get warm in 2

predict

protracted emergency situation,

Even if the power docs go out,
Smith says the outage would likely
be a couple of hours or at most a
couple of days, .

‘We're optimistic that B.C,
Hydro is going to be able to deal
with it,” he says.

A ire doomsday scenario — a
two-week power oulage — would
eventually sec things like elderly
patients moved from Terraceview
Lodge to Mills Memorial Hospital,
which can run on iis emergency
generators,

In that situation, churches, school
gyms and the like can be opened up
if people need to be evacuated from
their homes.

What will Smith and his family
do differently?

He says they’re going to buy
more camping food than they’ ll ac-
tually use this summer and kcep the
extra at home through the winter,

They’re also stockpiling a couple
weeks worth of canned goods in the
pantry by buying a few extra cans
on each trip to the grocery store.

Smith hopes that by: January
2000, nothing dire will have hap-
pened, and the cily will have
emerged much better prepared.

“This will be a benefit to the city
for years to come,’’ he said.

City of Terrace working
to keep water flowing

YOU WILL still have running water and
toilets that Oush afler midnight on Jan. 1
2000.

That’s the sdlemn pledge of a group of
City of Terrace staff members who have
been working for several months already to
bullet-proof city systems from the Year
2000 computer bug.

While 75 per cent of city systems are
probably now Year 2000-ready, there is
mare work to be done.

Deputy treasurer Judy Degerness coor-
dinates the city’s Y2k commiltce and says
the work goes far beyond the city’s
$235,000 municipal software upgrade now
underway.

Tn fact if truth be told, she says, they
don’t really care if city hall computers
crash and memos can’t be printed or tax
niolices can’t be issued for a few days in
January.

“The main areas of direct cily concern
has been ensuring water will flow when
you turn on your taps,’’ she says.

All of the parts of the cily water system,
right down to components of the well and
pumphouse, are being checked to ensure
there’s no computer chips that will bomb
when the century licks over.

In most cases thal involves getting letters
of assurance from suppliers that the com-
ponents arc Y2K-ready, Degerness saitl.

Thal’s because the weil’s normal opera-
tion depends on power from B,C, Hydro.

Degemess says the city will thcrefore
have crews on standby when the clock ticks
over prepared to fire up generators to
ensure cily wells and pumps keep operating
if the power does go out. ;

They’ve also taken steps to ensure city
equipment can get fucl from local gas sup-

pliers cven if gas pumps stop working.

That’s needed lo ensure the generators
run and city equipment and snow plows can
continue to function,

The key to it all is organization and plan-
ning, she says,

“I's a big thing. As long as you have
your lists and you go back to those lists and
make sure everything is ticked off, it should
be okay.’”

Many suppliers and outside organizations
are reluctant to give rock-solid guarantces
that they’Ii still be functioning.

In most cases they’re confident of their
own systems, but can’t be certain of out-
siders.

“Everybody seems to think I’m up, but 1
can’t guarantee if you’re going to be up,'?
says fire chicf Randy Smith. “It’s a domino
effect.”?

Despite the detailed preparations, Deger-
ness doesn’t expect serious trouble,

“My personal feeling is across the coun-

city DEPUTY treasurer Judy Degerness installs

Y2K-compliant software in city computer systems,

But even that’s no guarantee things will

work,

said,

Iry is going to go real smoothly,” she

Gas, food shortages believed possible

ONE LOCAL man isn’t
convinced the Year 2000
will arrive withouta hitch,

Mike Rosenau, a local
pastor, has conducted ex-
tensive research into the
Y2K issue and has given
semingrs in northem B.C.
on it,

He says that while
businesses and governments
have taken big steps to ad-
dress the problem in the last
two years, there are still
major areas of vulnerability
— even if the power docs
stay on.

*“There’s a real possibility
we'll have gas shortages,”
Rosenau says.

North Sea oil rigs, for cx-

ample, have hundreds of
systems that may or may not
be ¥2K-compliant buried
below sea level,

**There are problems right
from the oil coming out of
the ground to oil pipelines
to oil manufacturing, And in
some cases if there are
power shortages the gas
may nol be pumped out of
the ground,” Rosenau says.

In food distribution and
niaaufacturing, plus) many
olher factory floors across
North America, Rosenau
says, there arc automated

systems that are not all Year

2000-compiiant,
“There is a possibility that
it is not going to be business

as usual in terms of things
like food distribution and
we'te going to have
shorlages in some arcas,’’
he said. ‘No one really
knows how bad that’s going
to be,’?

**It happens in other coun-
tries now,” he - adds,
“They’re used’ to it. but
we're not.used to it, we're
used to having everything
available to us now.??

Rosenau hopes that most
people take~ at. feast some
basic precautions and.ensure
they have extra cash. and
canned and dry goods’ on
hand) = os

“The very best thing that
could happen” is people

would begin to store some
essential items well in ad-
vance of the year 2000,” he
says. “If every citizen were
lo pick up a couple of extra
items every time they go to
the grocery store then if

there are shortages in Janu- |

ary or February, there won't
be panic and peaple won't
be rushing down and empty-
ing the store”? =~.
Rosenau ‘said his family
has taken up canning, ad-
ding his church bought a
canner for the congrega-

tion’s use and they’re busy.

sloring some goods. -
*’He said it's also important
to keep close track of. all

financial’ records: — ‘bank

account balances, invest-
ment portfolio statements,
credit card statements and
other bills — so you can
prove what your balances

should be in case those
companics lose data or
Tecords. —

“It’s better to be safe than

sorry,’’ he adds.
kk kkk

There are a number of In-
ternet web sites that provide
extensive information and
analysis of possible ¥2K
probiems,

Some of them are:

www. yearZH).con.
 owww.canZi.com
 www.timebomb2000,com

www.euy2k.com