My day embedded in a disaster drill

You ask, "What does an assignment editor do in her free time?"

Silly!  She immerses herself in one of if not THE largest, full-scale disaster drill Cuyahoga County has executed.

Throwing myself into the social media, blogging world has allowed me to have some amazing contacts including Erica Creech, who is the Communications Planner for the City of Cleveland Department of Public Safety and Office of Emergency Management.  Erica invited me to take part in the disaster drill this summer involving 51+ agencies from Cuyahoga County--agencies from the local, county, and federal levels.

Here is a quick, brief, and very simplified overview to set the stage on why before I share what I saw and how it unfolded.

Simply put, the emergency disaster drills are required at least every three years.  Oftentimes, the city or county or state are able to ascertain grants to pay for them. The head honchos of this particular drill, which took place at the Port of Cleveland, began their planning in December of 2011.  They pulled together at least 51 agencies to participate -- ranging from the FBI to local police, fire, EMS, Homeland Security, Cleveland Public Power, Coast Guard, area Health Departments, Medical Examiner's Office, Red Cross, area hospitals, various city halls, VA agencies, SERT, well you get the idea!  (And I do apologize if I did not list you all by name).

It takes massive planning, endless hours, and much dedication to pull it all together.  Just as you had fire drills in grade school, it's the similar concept though on a much grander platform.  We all have to be prepared in an emergency but it just doesn't happen.  Practice makes perfect.  These drills ensure those who keep us safe know exactly what to do should anything ever happen around us.  We are located in close proximity to two very large and active power plants, a massive body of water, and a number of airports.


I was invited to take part in the "It's Hotter in Cleveland" exercise. I jumped at the chance, though a tad apprehensive not knowing exactly what to expect.  Media were included because during an emergency, media will be there.  We (as media) can get a first hand look at what our rescuers do and WHY we shouldn't get in their way but in the same breath, the Emergency Management Team understand we need to do our job.  Media was just as much a part of this drill so coordinators could see how they could use the Media to get information out to the public in the quickest manner during a mass emergency.

We had a pre-planning session where we met with the main players in charge of this drill, got everything explained to us, and even donned the PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) suits that rescuers wear to protect themselves from differing conditions dealing with heat, chemicals, electrical, biohazards, etc. 

The simple gist of this drill, and yes -- IT WAS JUST A DRILL.  Anyone speaking on camera or tweeting referenced "It's just a drill."  So the gist of THIS drill:  There was an incident in Detroit (radiological) with mass casualties and many victims were brought to Cleveland via our Port anyway they could get them here (boat, air, etc) for treatment.  The actual drill ran all week long.  The day I participated we were at the Port.  The next day they executed drills at area hospitals.  Bottom line:  EVERY single agency must be included and work together to assure success.

Before the drill even began, my respect for rescue teams grew 1000x after trying to put on the PPE suit.  You can't.  You can't put the suit on alone.  You need a handler to help get the heavy suit on with multiple pairs of gloves, and shoes, and the gas mask and head gear.  Then imagine wearing this outfit carrying fire extinguishers or oxygen tanks, a two-way radio.... rescuing people from a burning building AND having to use a cell phone or radio to communicate with other personnel while wearing multiple pairs of gloves.  I have a hard time dialing my cell or typing on my computer when my nails are longer than usual.  Seriously!

The day of the drill -- AMAZING!  I arrived at the Port of Cleveland.  I saw many contacts I've known over the years, I met some contacts I've spoken to via phone or email or Twitter and met even new comrades I hope to work with for many years to come!

We signed in, were assigned a 'guide' if you will who was expected to travel everywhere with us for legal purposes and answer any questions we had.  My guide was Dan Ball, who was awesome in explaining what was happening and if he didn't have an answer, knew exactly who to contact!

Setting the stage:  Victims were brought to the Port of Cleveland needing help and assessment.  They may have radiation so rescuers in the PPE suits had to off-load the victims from the arriving boats then begin the extensive decontamination and evaluation process BEFORE leaving the Port to go to an area hospital.  Seeing the wheels in motion simply riveting.  There were various stations set up outside the Port where they evaluated each and every patient.  And when I say every patient, I mean even animals /dogs. Let's say a seeing eye dog was brought with his owner.  He, too, needed to go through a decontamination process. Once they were cleared, Animal Control would take charge of what's next.

Emergency personnel made sure the victims were not filled with radiation.  You have to remember there could be terrorists mixed in this casualty group--just another roadblock rescuers had to confront.  After the first decon session, they were taken into a tent to be worked on more closely and then brought out of the tent and put on a gurney for one more check over with a type of radiation detecting machine.  Once they passed that test, they were taken inside the Port of Cleveland.  Inside were more stations set up to determine where each patient should go next depending on the severity of their injuries.  For example, they had "Immediate," "Delayed," "Minor," "Patient tracking," "Triage nurses," and a makeshift "Morgue" for those already deceased.

What was cool during the drill is that every single person working had a job, a title, and wore that title on a placard or vest on their chest such as exercise safety controllers, labor units, PIO's, safety office, logistics, finance administration, coast guard, police, fire department, emts, medical examiner, red cross, etc.... they all had a special role and were key players in this drill.  'Evidence collection stations' are needed as well and folks to keep impeccable records.  Once a patient is sent to an area hospital, officials need to keep track of them to make sure they made it to the hospital and know exactly where they are at all times should family try finding them.


Back to the guys (or gals) in the PPE suits.  Honestly, I am in awe.  Again, they need help donning their suits.  They can only remain in them for 30 minutes.  They have a bell which rings when they only have 5 minutes of air left.  The folks in the suits then swap out at the end of their 30 minutes and then, they too, must go through a whole decontamination process to make sure THEY were not affected.  Medical staff on hand take the vitals of the PPE guys and ask them how they are feeling then they must sit for 20 minutes.  After that 20 minutes they must take their vitals again.  Once in the suit, you can't suit up again for that day.  Honestly, I was in that suit for no more than maybe 15 minutes and DRENCHED and exhausted when I exited the PPE suit.  I don't know how these rescue teams do it.

While in the PPE suit not really being able to talk, they have various signs they use to communicate with their fellow team members, especially if they are in danger.

After each session, there is a 'Hot Wash' where each department head gives an overview of how they think the drill went, if there are areas to improve, and any other feedback.  Then after the drill is complete there are more in depth de-briefing sessions and reports filed by each department.

On to the next drill....to be continued......