The results of a survey distributed to residents of Deep River this summer, designed to gauge the impact of COVID-19 on the community and how the town’s recovery efforts could help, was recently presented at a Deep River Board of Selectmen (BOS) meeting. Scarcity, health, and jobs topped resident’s concerns.

The town distributed postcards to 1,922 households in Deep River, asking for participation in the online questionnaire. In all, 400 households participated, for a 21 percent response rate.

In addition to asking questions related to demographics, data was generally collected on the impact of COVID-19 on households, their perceived risk of becoming infected with COVID-19 and the likelihood of participation in certain reopening activities, among other categories.

Kimberley Megrath, a research scientist and a resident of Chester, had volunteered to administer the survey on behalf of the town. She presented the results at the Oct. 27 meeting.

In terms of the impact of COVID-19 on households for the months of April and May, Megrath reported that most households, 68 percent, had issues with COVID-19 supplies, such as face masks and hand sanitizer, as examples.

The second highest concern, physical wellbeing, was reported by 53 percent of participants while 52 percent reported an impact in relation to socializing with friends and family.

Another significant impact, loss of a job or income, affected 27 percent of households responding.

“As a result, you have things like food insecurity…ability to pay utilities, some concern about childcare, ability to pay mortgage and loss of health insurance, all of which are incredibly impactful as far as families being able to meet what many of us would consider to be basic needs,” said Megrath, at the meeting.

The survey also gauged a household’s perceived risk of becoming infected with COVID-19 over the summer, in relation to the state’s reopening phases. The results showed that 43 percent perceived the risk to be “low,” 41 percent perceived the risk to be “moderate,” and 12 percent responded with “high.”

“So, obviously, the higher the [perceived] risk, the less probability that they are going to…engage in reopening activities,” said Megrath.

Survey respondents were also asked which activities offered during the state’s three phases of reopening they were most likely to partake in. For these questions, respondents could select “1—not likely,” “2–somewhat likely,” or “3—very likely,” with a majority selecting “somewhat” or “not likely”.

“So, across phase one, phase two, and phase three, people in Deep River households are telling you they are at a maximum only somewhat likely to participate, and the range was from 2.1 down to 1.1 saying ‘We’re not likely’” to participate, said Megrath.

Outdoor recreation and personal services were two activities that respondents were somewhat likely to participate in. They were less likely to attend an outdoor arts, entertainment, or other event with up to 50 people in attendance or visit the public library, according to the Megrath.

Asked about the minimum safety precautions necessary to participate in activities, the majority, 48 percent, responded by saying that they needed to see evidence of safety procedures before participating.

“Evidence” was defined by regular cleaning, availability of hand sanitizer, employees wearing masks and gloves, adherence to social distancing and masks, among other protocols, according to the survey.

The availability of a vaccine was identified by 24 percent of respondents as necessary for participation in reopening activities.

In the survey, the town received feedback on the ways in which it could best support both households and the community in COVID-19 recovery efforts. The highest-rated actions were in the areas of COVID-19 supplies, business, education and social services.

“Households rated actions involving a resource list, tours and trails, public and private partnerships, and virtual communities as more supportive of their family while grant funding and mutual aid were rated as more supportive of the community,” according to Megrath.

Megrath suggested using the feedback to help the town identify areas to focus on moving forward.

“So we know, just using this as an example, outdoor activities were preferred…These were activities that many families did a high percentage before [COVID]. So, if you’re inclined to create opportunities for people to spend time outdoors in Deep River, tours and trails might be one of the things that you can think about,” she said.

Megrath also recommended using existing town committees or groups to help respond to the four action areas that were identified by respondents.

Megrath suggested potentially working with the Connecticut River Area Health District in the area of COVID-19 supplies, the town’s Economic Development Commission in the area of business, the Deep River Board of Education in the area of education, and the town’s Community Health Committee in the area of social services.