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Disaster drill rated a success by
agencies
By
MARY GALES ASKREN
Capital Journal Staff
The report on a disaster drill conducted at the Pierre Regional Airport in
October shows the drill was a success, according to Hughes County Emergency
Management Director Rob Fines.
"The only way you're going to be proficient in the field is practice.
That's what we've done in the past and what we'll continue to do," he said.
Thirty agencies, including law enforcement, fire departments, medical personnel,
airlines, communications groups and the media, were involved in the exercise. It
was the second full-scale exercise organized within a year. The first was a
hazardous materials disaster at the Capitol earlier in the year.
The seven-page report on the airport drill was not released to the press as were
earlier reports. This decision was made for security reasons, Fines said.
"As a group, they decided that they wanted to use it as a learning tool for
their agencies, because it has information of a sensitive nature," he said.
Disaster drills are conducted so that responders are able to practice skills
they have learned in training and so that areas can be identified where
additional training is needed. Because the drill identified not only the
strengths of responding agencies, but also areas in which improvement is needed,
the drill accomplished what exercise organizers hoped to achieve, according to
Fines.
Communication in the field was an area where improvement is needed, he said.
This resulted in a delay in removing patients from the field.
"When units responded to the scene, they weren't sure where to go,"
Fines said.
He said this can be attributed to the way training has been done in the past.
Table-top exercises, which prepare responding agencies for a full-scale
exercise, have included organizational leaders – those who would be in the
command centers – rather than those who are working in the field.
"We need to expand our training out to ... folks who are responding,"
Fines said.
Having identified an area for improvement, exercise organizers have been able to
develop a training program which will address this. The report includes the
plan, according to Fines.
"The report has really shown us a pattern, where we want to go in the
future," he said.
In addition to training responders in the field, the responding agencies from
Hughes and Stanley counties will be learning a new command system, one which is
being promoted nationally, called the National Incident Management System. This
system, which is an improvement over the incident command systems agencies have
been using, is required by 2005 to continue receiving federal funds, according
to Fines.
Because the airport disaster drill included a new element – dealing with
families – the exercise also identified where additional planning and training
is needed in that area. He said the American Red Cross will be working with
agencies who would be responsible for this.
"We had family members going everywhere," Fines said.
Aside from identifying communication problems in the field and the need for
better family-related services, Fines said, the disaster drill at the airport
showed a major strength in agency response.
"It shows that this group continues to work together as they have in the
past," he said.
He said that he is confident that in the event of a real disaster, everyone
would know what to do.
However, to ensure that the problems which were identified are properly
addressed, two disaster exercises will be held in the coming year – one in
rural Hughes County and one in Stanley County.
He credits the exercise plan team with identifying the need for additional
practice, which is not required either by state or federal agencies.
"This is an aggressive group of people," Fines said. "The
counties are lucky to have this group of people."
Story by: Mary
Gales Askren
Capital Journal, Pierre, SD
www.capitaljournal.com
For more information about the Pierre Fire
Department, e-mail the PFD
webmaster.
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