THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 9, 1995 TAG: 9506090533
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines
Everything that could cause problems during the disaster drill at the Coast Guard base Thursday did.
A C-130 ``crashed'' and clipped a building in the fire and rescue exercise. Everyone involved was expecting that.
They didn't expect that the initial report of five people on board would be wrong. It was 12.
They didn't know a firefighter would suffer a simulated heart attack as officials from all over Pasquotank County worked to resolve the planned disaster.
They didn't think a dazed ``crash victim'' would wander off the base and be taken to Albemarle Hospital by a passerby, leaving him unaccounted for in the rubble and unexpected at the hospital.
These unforeseen difficulties were part of the closely choreographed drill that tested nearly 100 fire, rescue, law enforcement and hospital personnel from some 20 agencies. It was the biggest exercise of its kind in county history.
And through all the fake fatalities, imagined injuries, false fuel spill and pretend pesticide contamination, officials say the response mechanism was terrific.
``The operation was a complete success,'' said exercise director Cmdr. Jim Crawford, executive officer of the Coast Guard Support Center at the base. ``We operated together very, very well.''
The purpose of the exercise was to test how various agencies would coordinate their response to a major crisis. Personnel had to put out the fire, set up a triage for injured victims, decontaminate people exposed to pesticide released in the crash and contain a fuel spill left by the plane. The group consisted of professionals and volunteers from Elizabeth City, Pasquotank and the base.
On top of this, a lot of units had to do their real jobs. Three ambulances were called away on true emergencies during the exercise.
``The county itself played real world and exercise at the same time,'' said Cmdr. Mike Thompson, a Coast Guard reservist based in Seattle who came to coordinate the operation. ``And they did a great job.''
Evaluators noted the primary problem was with communications systems. Participants agreed that more telephones and radio frequencies would have smoothed out some parts of the operation.
Crawford noted that there were some other minor concerns, such as the need for a Coast Guard person to monitor and manage arriving equipment in the early stages.
But there were no glaring problems in the afternoon operation.
``It was really well done,'' Thompson said. ILLUSTRATION: MOTOYA NAKAMURA/Staff color photos
At right, Blayne Harshbarger plays the role of a crash victim with
much of his body covered in fake blood. At far right, paramedics
attend to a victim at the C-130's ``crash'' site. Nearly 100 fire,
rescue, law enforcement and hospital personnel from 20 agencies
participated in Thursday's mock disaster drill at the Elizabeth City
Coast Guard base. It was the biggest exercise of its kind in
Pasquotank County history.
by CNB