 |
| Aroostook Republican Photo/Lisa Wilcox From left, members of the staff of Family Eye Care & Mavor Optical, office administrator Dawn Westman, Dr. Craig Small, office manager Tracy Roberts, and frame and lens specialist Susan Bell, returned to work at their newly renovated office in early September after suffering massive damage from a July rainstorm. Absent when the photo was taken was Dr. Amy Hebert. |
By Lisa Wilcox
Staff Writer
CARIBOU — According to the National Weather Service, the summer of 2013 was the second wettest on record in Caribou with a total of 18.9 inches of rain recorded as of Aug. 28. The month of July alone saw 7.27 of those inches, with 3.81 falling mostly within a two-hour timeframe on July 17.
It was on the evening of July 17 that Family Eye Care & Mavor Optical front office administrator Dawn Westman realized that she had left her cell phone at work. She decided to brave what remained of the aftereffects of the torrential downpour from earlier in the day and traveled in to the Herschel Street office to retrieve her phone at about 10 p.m. When she opened the door to the office, she could hear water running.
“I thought, ‘Oh, pretty, a waterfall,’” Westman said, referring to a decoration she thought had been purchased for the front office, which had just undergone renovations over Memorial Day weekend.
What she found when she stepped inside could be classified as a waterfall, but not in the peaceful, serene manner one would envision. The heavy rains had accumulated in a clogged outside drain, causing the pipes in the ceiling to burst. Water was pouring into the office at a fast clip.
Westman sloshed across the soggy floor and immediately called Dr. Craig Small, the owner of the optometry practice.
“Dawn called me all panicked and told me that the office was flooded,” Small recalled. “I thought she was being overdramatic and maybe the toilet had overflowed or something.”
But when Small arrived at the building, he quickly realized that Westman was not exaggerating the seriousness of the situation and leapt into action.
“He ran immediately to the back and pulled the server out of the wall,” Westman said. “That is the heart of our operation.”
The server contained all of their patients’ records, the majority of which had recently been transferred from paper to electronic files. The water that was coming in through the front ceiling had flooded the office all the way to the back, damaging anything that was sitting on the floor, including their computers.
Thankfully, the patient files were backed up regularly and were not lost. The majority of Small’s optometry equipment sits high enough off the floor that it was not damaged either, but just about everything else in the path of the flood was ruined.
Further examination of the structure found that the water had not only accumulated on the floor, but in the walls as well, resulting in it being necessary for the entire office to be gutted.
“We just couldn’t believe it,” Westman said. “Water ran out of the walls for two days.”
The extensive renovations resulted in the operation being closed from July 18 until Sept. 4. When the office reopened, it was with a brand new interior and different layout. An extra exam room, field testing room and pre-testing room were added along with a handicapped accessible bathroom.
Small credits the fast action of his employees, family, friends, contractor Shawn Trombley and electrician Craig McGlinn for saving the structure itself.
“On the night that it happened, everyone stayed until about 3 in the morning helping to make sure that the damage was contained,” Small advised.
“We are thankful that no one was hurt,” Westman added. “With all that water and electronic components, someone could have been electrocuted. Or the walls and ceiling could have fallen in on someone.”
The Family Eye Care building is historic in Caribou. It was once the Odd Fellows Hall before it became the R.H. Frost insurance agency. Kieffer Insurance owned the building when it was sold to Craig’s father, Dr. Ogden Small, around 1986.
The third generation of Smalls to practice optometry, Craig took over the operation in 1996. Some of the original equipment owned by Craig’s grandfather, Dr. William Small, who began the practice in 1920, is still on display in the Family Eye Care waiting area.
The office staff credits Craig’s wife, Jane Mavor-Small, with selecting the new decor.
“I would never want to go through anything like this again,” office manager Tracy Roberts commented, “but if there is a silver lining, it’s this beautiful new office.”
Small is certified by the American Board of Optometry, as is Dr. Amy Hebert, who practices part-time with Small. Family Eye Care provides comprehensive eye exams and preventative vision care. Small and Hebert diagnose, monitor and treat cataracts, glaucoma and diabetes-related eye diseases. They also are available for emergency care for eye infections or injuries.
Mavor Optical, located right in the Family Eye Care office, offers a variety of eyeglass lenses, frames, contact lenses, prescription sunglasses, and sports and protective eyewear.
Office hours are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. More information can be found at www.drcraigsmall.com.
