Using RSVP volunteers in disaster drills

Rate this practice

Average

Your rating: None

Abstract

In Franklin County, Washington, RSVP volunteers participate in the Franklin County Emergency Management Agency's annual disaster drills conducted at the Pasco Regional Airport. As part of a daylong exercise the RSVP volunteers are assigned roles of victims having various injuries. On October 18, 2001 these volunteers formed the nucleus of a large group of citizen volunteers called on to help the United States Marines stage a biological attack drill at the Volpentest Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response (HAMMER) Training and Education Center. The exercise was the first of a series of drills, planned in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Diane Hart submitted this effective practice in December 2001.

Issue

Practicing a coordinated response to terrorist attacks and other disaster preparedness and disaster mitigation activities presents a good opportunity to use senior volunteers whose programs are involved in homeland security efforts.

Action

According to Diane Hart, RSVP Project Director in Kennewick, Washington, the United States Marine Corps contacted the Benton/Franklin County RSVP with their plans to stage a hazardous materials drill and to solicit volunteers. Effective practices for a successful training drill included:

RSVP volunteers formed the nucleus of a large group of citizen volunteers called on to help the Marines stage a biological attack drill at the Volpentest Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response (HAMMER) Training and Education Center on the outskirts of Richmond, Washington.
The exercise involved the Marine Corps Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (CBIRF), the Washington National Guard, the Hanford Nuclear Reservation Fire Department, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the City of Richland Police Department Bomb Squad.
Twenty to twenty five senior volunteers signed up to help with the training. (A typical drill requires over 100 volunteers.) Other volunteers were from professional organizations and the community.
The RSVP volunteers were assigned roles as victims of the staged biological attack Ãa toxic gas leak from a derailed tanker that had exploded as a result of terrorist activity. For training purposes the victims were in surrounding buildings.
When the Marines arrived on the scene they encountered a chaotic situation designed by instructors. Multiple agencies had responded, each with their own procedures and "lingo". Nobody knew what had exploded or how many people were in the buildings exposed to leaking gas. Later in the training a bomb was discovered. Rescuers helped "victims" out of buildings and led them to a decontamination tent. Some of the victims were unconscious and couldn't walk out on their own. Real life props included an over turned tanker truck and buildings that were filled up with smoke.
This was the first in a series of exercises to be conducted annually that are meant to focus on domestic terrorism.
The county provided seniors with a free breakfast on the day of the drill.
Afterwards, an article about the training drill appeared in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, to increase public awareness and highlight the usefulness of the drill.

Context

The Volpentest Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response (HAMMER) Training and Education Center is a worker safety training facility featuring the most extensive number of training props available at one location. HAMMER is located on the U.S. Department of Energy's 560 square mile Hanford Site in southeastern Washington near the city of Richmond. The Department of Energy originally created the site to train for worst-case scenarios at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, and it is now one of the top hazardous materials training facilities in the country. HAMMER's customers are students, providers or sponsors of training. HAMMER provides the hands-on learning facility; user organizations provide their own instructors and programs or contract with HAMMER to acquire these services.

Franklin County Emergency Management (FCEM) is responsible for coordinating and establishing emergency response plans to prepare Franklin County for emergencies involving all natural and manmade disasters, Energy Northwest, the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and the Pasco Airport. Even though FCEM is not an emergency response agency, they work with a number of first responders like the Pasco Police and Fire Departments, Franklin County Sheriff's Office and Dispatch Center, the Washington State Patrol, Franklin County Fire Protection Districts, Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, American Red Cross and a number of other Federal, State and Local Agencies.

The mission of Benton-Franklin Volunteer Center is to mobilize people and resources to deliver creative solutions to community problems. They coordinate volunteer opportunities for families, seniors, youth, and the corporate community of Benton and Franklin Counties, in central Washington.

Outcome

Seniors enjoyed helping with this training because it allowed them to serve their country.The training encouraged coordination among agencies to prepare for terrorism.

Evidence

Seniors who participated in the training said they would gladly return to help with more trainings.Colonel Mike McCaffree, commander of the 10th Weapons of Mass Destruction team for the National Guard in Tacoma said that the Seattle Fire Department is one of the best prepared in the country when it comes to biological incidents of terror. This is due in large part to the support of his team to many local fire departments and hazardous materials teams in Washington State, and to training drills like the one involving these seniors.

Posted On

March 18, 2003

For More Information

Source Documents

Related Practices

Related sites

Senior Corps

Keywords:

Seniors

Volunteer

Training

Senior Corps

Public safety