EMA holds biennial test

LISBON -- Columbiana County residents within a 10-mile radius of the Beaver Valley nuclear power station can be rest assured local emergency responders know what to do if something goes wrong.

They passed a recent test of their capabilities with flying colors during the biennial exercise for a simulated incident at the power plant held last week. The exercise took place at the Emergency Operations Center at the county Emergency Management Agency, along with other locations in the county.

"The state of Ohio and Columbiana County during the week of the evaluated exercise demonstrated that appropriate measures were taken to provide reasonable assurance to protect the health and safety of the public. That's the goal of the exercise," exercise director Edward Golinski Jr. said during a recent media briefing.

Golinski works in the area of technological hazards national preparedness for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region 5 headquartered in Chicago, Ill.

During the briefing, he said this was a "very successful exercise."

The exercise was done in parts under a scenario that a radioactive material plume occurred and reached Columbiana County. The first responders and public officials had to act out what they would do during different stages of the incident, under the watchful eye of federal evaluators. The same testing was going on simultaneously in Beaver County, Pa. and Hancock County, W.Va., which are all within the 10-mile emergency planning zone from the plant. The state of Ohio was also being tested.

Golinski said the state of Ohio met all 10 capabilities tested and Columbiana County met all 17 capabilities tested. The exercise included 225 participants which came from the EMA, fire departments, law enforcement, American Red Cross, health department, communications personnel, schools and public officials, including the county commissioners.

The exercise started June 6 at Middleton Township Fire/EMS involving department members, the county's Community Emergency Response Team, American Red Cross and the county health department hosting a public reception center where the public would have to go.

On June 7, East Liverpool city schools superintendent and staff demonstrated how they would take care of the children in a potential evacuation, the Ohio State Highway Patrol demonstrated traffic control and the county EMA activated the Emergency Operations Center. On June 8, the last night of the exercise, the American Red Cross and amateur radio simulated a care center/shelter at McKinley Elementary School in Lisbon. West Point Fire, Lisbon Fire and Glenmoor Fire departments and amateur radio simulated a decontamination center at the Beaver Local sports complex on state Route 7.

That's a lot of people and a lot of moving parts for an exercise. Representatives of Energy Harbor, operator of the power station, also were involved, along with local representatives of the Ohio EMA. Pete Hill serves as the Ohio EMA resident radiological analyst/senior health physicist at the county EMA office.

County EMA Director Peggy Clark and Deputy Director/911 Coordinator Brian Rutledge oversee the EOC.

Clark said residents "should be assured the volunteers in this county are well-trained should we ever have to respond to an incident at the Beaver Valley Power Station."

An exercise like this also makes them more prepared for any other type of emergency that may come up.

mgreier@salemnews.net