Disaster Drill Conducted
Claiborne Progress
October 4, 2006
By Ed Baldwin, Correspondent
First responders from several locations in East Tennessee converged on the fair grounds in Tazewell on Saturday, Sept. 30 to conduct a disaster drill.
According to the scenario, an airplane crashed into the fair barn and caught fire resulting in numerous injuries and deaths. A box trailer was used to simulate the plane body and a large roll of hay was afire to provide smoke. Victims were portrayed by students from the Tennessee Technical Center.
The initial call was dispatched at 8:58 a.m. Most of the responders arrived at the scene quickly and began fighting the fire, securing the scene, and treating the wounded. Some staged at the Claiborne County High School as back-up. In addition to Claiborne County emergency personnel Union County sent an EMS unit; LifeStar, Air Evac, and Wings helicopters responded; and the Kingsport Red Cross sent a disaster scene food wagon.
The drill was completed about 10:30 a.m. Coordinator Larry Gibson gave his preliminary impression. "There is room for improvement," he said.
He added that he would be disappointed if it had gone perfectly, because that would have led to complacency. Evaluators will review notes and photos in order to complete a more thorough evaluation of the drill. Lessons learned will be used for future training of everyone involved.
