Click here to view the Tornado Exercise Photos. On September 26, 2009, several tornados touched down in Pendleton County this past Saturday damaging buildings and leaving numerous victims in its path. At least that was the scenario facing county officials at the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and emergency responders from various departments. 65 people from throughout the county volunteered to be “victims” of the tornado. The local Red Cross Team used a variety of cosmetics to make each one look like they had some type of injury. The volunteers had everything from cuts and bruises to broken and protruding bones to serious head trauma…all of it very realistic looking. This realism helped the emergency responders visualize what was wrong with their patient and provided a unique training opportunity.
There were several exercise events in the county starting at the Mt Auburn Apartments. About 7 “victims” were treated and transported at this location.
The next event took place at the River Valley Nursing Home. River Valley has older residents that would require a great deal of help should an evacuation become necessary. To test the evacuation procedures, 45 volunteers were placed in the nursing home and assumed the role of the residents. As the scenario progressed, the volunteers were evacuated just as the residents themselves would have been. Butler Baptist Church opened its doors as a temporary shelter, taking in the displaced and injured “victims”. This provided invaluable training to not only the first responders, but to the staff of River Valley Nursing Home. An evacuation of this scale at a nursing home of this size is a rare event, but something that will prove invaluable for the training it provided. The administrators and staff now have the confidence and knowledge that a major evacuation can be safely and quickly accomplished
The next “touchdown” took out the EOC and the 911 Dispatch Center. This is the location where all the county officials and departmental representatives are located to coordinate and provide support to the emergency responders dealing with the disaster. The scenario made the building unusable so the whole operation had to move to an alternate location at Northern Pendleton’s Fire Station. Equipment was unpacked, relocated and in less than an hour the EOC and Dispatch were operational. Two individuals with the State of Kentucky’s Emergency Management Agency were on hand evaluating the EOC. They stated that in their 16 years with Emergency Management they had never seen an EOC totally relocate. And to do it in less than an hour was an outstanding accomplishment…something of which the county could be very proud.
The final event took place near the Boston area just south of Butler. Exercise planners placed victims over a widespread area in a variety of locations…in trees, under furniture, in vehicles, under benches, in the woods, in tall grass, and in yards to name a few. This situation provided an excellent opportunity to utilize and hone a variety of mass casualty skills for the first responders,
The training everyone received from this drill will be invaluable should a large scale disaster happen in the county. Many people and departments were involved to make this happen. Mike Moore, Pendleton County’s Emergency Manager, especially wants to thank the community volunteers who supported this event. Their participation added realism, made an exercise of this magnitude possible and provided a one of a kind training opportunity for a variety of first responders and care takers.
Departments involved with this exercise were Butler Community Fire Department, Butler Police Department, Falmouth Fire Department, Northern Pendleton Fire Department and Ambulance Service, Pendleton County 911 Dispatch, Pendleton County Ambulance Service, Pendleton County Animal Control Department, Pendleton County Emergency Management Agency, Pendleton County Health Department, Pendleton County Red Cross, Pendleton County Road Department, Pendleton County Search and Rescue, Pendleton County School System, and Pendleton County Sheriff’s Department.