Mike James/The Independent
Kenova — The crash was simulated but much of the misery was not.
Pretend victims shivered in the rain Saturday morning at Tri-State Airport in Kenova while emergency workers played out a disaster scenario that tested their readiness for the real thing.
The exercise, required every three years at the airport, brought fire departments, hospitals, emergency medical services and others together to practice response to the crash of a twin-engine jet like those used for commercial flights at Tri-State.
“It’s a test of the airport and what the surrounding community is able to assist us with in the event of a large-scale crash,” said Kevin Price, director of operations and fire chief at the airport.
By going through the motions together, emergency responders get a good idea of what would happen in a genuine emergency, he said.
The exercise didn’t use the terminal, runways or taxiways needed for commercial flights or other day to day operations. It was on a site at the back entrance to the airport.
About 150 acting as crash victims spent a chilly hour or so reclining on the tarmac with labels pinned to their shirts identifying their hypothetical injury; emergency workers sorted them by seriousness of injury and ambulances took them to area hospitals.
The number involved, about 1,000 emergency responders, and the range of agencies made for an elaborate and difficult simulation. “It’s very complex and hard to do,” Price said. Planners take a year to put the drill together.
Based on what he saw Saturday, Harold Holly, Boyd County deputy director of disaster and emergency services, believes agencies are ready for the real thing. His agency was among those serving as evaluators.
The drill revealed a need for more delegating of tasks and improvement of radio communication coordination, Holly said.
Large drills are valuable in bringing disparate agencies together, where they build relationships and learn to work together, he said. “It all leads down to training with each other more.”
The agencies will meet in a month to discuss the drill, Price said.
MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2652.
