“At the end of the day, 150 people were better prepared than the day before” – participant
LAFD coaching Triage Volunteers – photo by Martha Benedict
The Drill was very successful in giving a relatively small group of CERT members experience in gathering and managing volunteer teams to accomplish the various disaster response activities. The “core” team of 10 CERT members was able to effectively organize over 100 volunteers, which is excellent training for a real disaster.
The Drill was moderately successful in simulating an earthquake disaster environment, by placing made-up “survivors” at unknown locations along streets around the Church parking lot, for the SAR teams to find, assess and transport back for medical care. Better preparation and briefing of the survivors would have enhanced the triage phases of the exercise, both in the field by SAR team leaders, and in the medical care area of ICS.
Neighborhood outreach was probably the most successful aspect of the Drill; the Production staff registered double the number of volunteers expected, due to impressive event signs and banners, and an effective email campaign and website. The people who attended experienced realistic disaster-response activities and the majority participated in some manner, as assigned by the Volunteer Coordinator.
Read the complete After Action Report, compiled from “Hot Wash” observations, as well as forms submitted by participants, observers and CERT Evaluators.
“This was a good start – what do we do to keep the momentum and expand the participation?” –participant