Tennesee prepares for large emergency drills
Volunteer State finds many willing to lend a hand as emergency planners simulate three different types of disasters; Miami’s volunteer patrol gears up, too
They do not call it the Volunteer State for nothing. School children and other citizens will soon be joining Homeland Security officials in Tennessee for a large-scale series of emergency response drills to begin 31 March, the Cleveland Daily Banner reported. Preceded by two separate tabletop exercises involving various government and emergency agencies, the live drills are intended to test the preparedness of emergency responders, law enforcement, hospitals, school systems, businesses, and city and county governments to a WMD attack. Three different scenarios will run at the same time: a simulated school shooting — which will involve 150 students eager to get the day off class to mimic being victims of a Columbine-style attack — an IED attack involving a hazardous chemical release, and a building collapse.
In related news, the volunteer security force known as Citizens on Patrol drilled last week with the Miami Police Department’s Office of Emergency Management, and agents from the Department of Homeland Security. The focus of the effort was on soft targets such as shopping malls that are physically vulnerable to terrorism but also ideal places for coordinated volunteer patrols. (Everyone likes shopping, and readers may know that some elderly people prefer a form of morning exercise called ‘mall-walking’.) “We’re putting these officers and volunteers out into the community to send a message to terrorism that we are going to be out here volunteering and doing what we have to do to protect our infrastructure,” said Officer Marcus Perez, according to CBS.
