Nashville activates severe weather response as frigid temps continue

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Metro Social Services announced it’s activating its Severe Weather Response amid the winter weather that’s forecasted to continue throughout the week.

MSS activated this response to ensure the safety of Nashville’s most vulnerable residents.

The response includes emergency meal delivery, senior welfare calls, communication with the Office of Emergency Management, and maintaining its office hours.

Below is a detailed look at each of the actions MSS will be taking:

Emergency Meal Delivery - Ahead of the storm, our home ambassadors delivered emergency meals to our homebound clients – seniors and disabled – to ensure they have a quick and ample food supply should severe weather hit and they are unable to access food. These emergency meals are in addition to the weekly hot and cold meals that we deliver to them.
- Our daily meal deliveries remain on schedule at this time. This week, as our home ambassadors conduct meal deliveries, they will be checking with our homebound clients to make sure all appliances are working and they are prepared to weather the winter storm. Should they need their heater or other critical appliances replaced, we will facilitate an immediate response to repair them.
  - This service is specifically for our homebound clients in congregate settings and private residences.
Senior Welfare Calls - Additionally, we have elevated our Senior Welfare Check program to Level 2 because of the severe cold. We know that many of our clients live alone and do not have family members nearby to check on them. Level 2 is an advanced stage of welfare calls that include very specific weather-related questions such as – is your heater working properly, do you need your front steps or driveway cleared of snow or ice, do you have enough of your prescriptions to last should severe weather impede travel, etc. We also increase the frequency of calls in Level 2.
- This service is available to all of our senior and disabled clients – homebound and not.
Communication with OEM - MSS has long been included in the Office of Emergency Management’s disaster response plan. Because we work so closely with them by responding to the needs of Nashville residents affected by emergencies, our executive director is in close communication with OEM’s leadership. Additionally, our team leaders are constantly monitoring the weather and ensuring our team is ready should we be activated.
Office Hours - At this time, MSS will maintain regular operating hours, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. We are located at 3055 Lebanon Pike (Hermitage).