Clive Avery, Marshall County EMA director, standing on the left, presented a tabletop disaster exercise to test the Kosciusko County Local Emergency Plan Committee response plan. Shown in front are Brittany King, United Way 2-1-1; Nathan Rhoades, Pierceton Fire Department; and Cathy Reed, LEPC. In the back are Darrell Eiler, South Bend Hazmat, Ed Rock, LEPC director; and Tony Doyle, Lutheran EMS.

KOSCIUSKO COUNTY — Are plans in place to handle a multi-agency, multi-discipline response to an emergency situation in the county?

A recent discussion based exercise or tabletop exercise was held to test and evaluate the county’s Local Emergency Plan Committee’s hazardous materials emergency response plan. The results indicated a large number of areas in the plan could be performed without challenges, but there were other areas where there were some challenges that did not negatively impact the plan; with one area that had major challenges. The result was initiating several improvement plans with completion goals by January 2018.

Clyde Avery, Argos, was hired as a consultant to create a hazardous material emergency. The exercise was held with such agencies participating as Indiana Department of Environmental Management, three fire departments, assistant director of the county communications center, representatives from Warsaw and Kosciusko emergency management agencies, Lutheran EMS, Parkview and Kosciusko Community Hospital, Red Cross, Hoosier Lakes Radio, United Way 2-1-1 and media.

The scenario: An accident at US 30 and SR 13 backing traffic up southbound on SR 13 to the railroad crossing. A semitanker hauling 5,500 gallons of pure nitric acid stops just across the tracks believing he is clear of the tracks. The crossing arms lower for a westbound train. A latch on a boxcar rips a 2-foot hole in the rear of the tank as it passes. The conductor sees pieces of flying debris and believes he has hit something and puts the train in emergency stop. Seven railroad cars derail. The liquid nitric acid leaks from the tear of the semitanker. One of the derailed cars is damaged and its product is flowing out. (Responders had to utilize resources to find what was leaking based on the railcar’s placard.)

Tony Doyle, Lutheran EMS, makes a point during mini group discussions of a hazardous materials response. Shown, from left, are Gordon Baker, Pierceton FIre Chief; Joe Secrist, American Red Cross, Dave Finndt, Parkview Hospital, Rich Hackel, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, and Don Ellison, Sidney/Burket Fire Department.

The scenario plays out from there. Reports of difficulty breathing, burning skin and eyes from residents, liquid spilling into nearby ditches, access to the sites are hindered, a determination is needed of what is leaking from the railcar and if there is an interaction with the nitric acid. Other factors are considered — the time to clear the emergency, contingencies, agencies to call and long term effect.

An evaluation team was present at the exercise to provide an analysis of core capabilities in the exercise. Strengths and areas of improvements were suggested. Other observations by participants were shared, most of which coincided with what the evaluation team found.

Seven improvement plans were reviewed and addressed. Only six of the plans were given start and completion dates for corrective actions. One plan, the re-establishment of a county hazmat team, was determined not to be attainable at this time.

According to the after-action report the improvement areas included: transitioning from small, short duration incidents to multi-agency or multi-jurisdictional incidents requiring multiple resources and continuing for several operational periods; understanding the purpose of the emergency operational center and its tasks, developing a written incident action plan, short and long term recovery objectives.

One of two small groups working out plans of action in a hazardous materials emergency response. Clockwise, from left, are Lynn Eberly, Kosciusko Community Hospital, Matt Brubaker, Pierceton Fire Department; Sarah Lancaster, 911 Communications Center; Mike Cox, Warsaw Emergency Management; Brittany King, United Way 2-1-1; Nathan Rhoades, Pierceton Fire Department, and Cathy Reed, Local Emergency Planning Commission.

A large concern was getting more agency representatives involved in the training process, training more people on the LEPC plan, having a list of resources available from the district, a hazardous materials operations class, advanced incident command system training, training on resource management, accountability, personnel and finance, incident command system training.

The plans set into action included: Training education in the understanding of the purpose of the Emergency Operations Center, participation in additional training exercises, development of incident management teams, training on incident command system forms, development of a communications and mass casualty plans. Ed Rock, county emergency management director, will undertake many of the plans. The county communications center and Lutheran Health Network will be overseeing the development of the communications and mass casualty plans.