Disaster drill at EC Coast Guard base
Simulation of plane crash, hazardous materials
Published : Thursday, 27 May 2010, 8:59 AM EDT
ELIZABETH CITY, NC (WAVY) - The Pasquotank-Camden Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) conducted an exercise Thursday at U. S. Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City.
The drill involved first responders reacting to a simulated crash of an airplane into the base's fuel farm. The exercise involved fire, mass casualties and a hazardous materials spill.
Response to the simulated disaster was designed to assess and evaluate Federal, State and local emergency plans, policies and procedures.
To enhance realism and to test interoperability, officials said radio communications were utilized, at times, between response agencies and in communication with local hospitals.
According to authorities, lessons learned from the exercise will provide the Pasquotank-Camden LEPC, the Coast Guard, and multiple emergency response agencies important information to update existing plans and to further develop regional plans.
The drill started around 9:00 a.m. and lasted until the early afternoon.
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VIDEO: UW Madison, Several Agencies Hold UW Madison, along with several law enforcement, medical and other area agencies held a full scale emergency drill today.
The exercise, named "Operation Badger One", simulated an incident on campus that required a response from several emergency agencies.
The scenario involved a man with bombs and a gun. It included actors who posed as hostages and victims who were injured or killed.
The exercise was designed to improve the University's response to real emergency situations. UW officials say one of the goals was to test procedures that are in place and to do so in a realistic environment.
"I think just for any agency its good practice. The more you do things the better you get at it and you can find where there's deficiencies and make improvement in those things so not only for the university, but for any agency to do those type of things," says Sergeant Kerri Miller with UW Police.
The victims were transported to local hospitals, which also participated in the exercise. Organizers say the exercise was designed to test preparedness, teamwork and communication between the agencies.
The exercise was a year in the making--with the UW Madison Police Department Emergency Management Unit heading up the planning.
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Preparing for an emergency
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| EMERGENCY RESPONSE: Firefighters use a fire house to douse a "patient" during a decontamination drill at Valley View Medical Center on Wednesday during the "on-scene" section of the drill. DANIEL CALLAHAN/The Daily News |
Decontamination drill challenges area agencies
By DANIEL CALLAHAN/The Daily News
In addition to VVMC and FMMFD, other participating agencies included the Bullhead City and Mohave Valley Fire Departments Hazardous Materials Teams, the Mohave County Health Departments, along with the Mohave Valley Community Emergency Response Team (CERT).
With FMMFD Battalion Chief Brett Scholz acting as incident commander, firefighters and other emergency personnel simulated a chemical spill with both an "on-scene" section — clearing "patients" for transport — and a decontamination shower tunnel set up for outside of an emergency room. Hospital employees and off-duty firefighters acted as patients.
Those participating in the drill were not previously informed what type of chemical would be simulated and had to determine the risk to crews and patients before moving them from station to station.
The program took place on the south side of the hospital and did not interrupt any hospital services, though the emergency helicopter had to be moved from the pad to ensure the safety of those involved.
According to VVMC public information officer Lance Ross, the drill was designed to "not only test everyone's skills and abilities but also it's a learning experience."
Ross noted "hiccups" in the setup process that would have been serious if it was a live hazmat situation. Hospital representatives along with members of the FMMFD met for over an hour afterwards to discuss what went well and those factors that needed improvement to be ready for a full-scale event.
"That's why you have a drill," he said.
http://www.mohavedailynews.com/articles/2010/05/27/news/local/doc4bfe109eded58819643913.txt
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