Augusta, GA - It was only a drill but local officials were spurred to action exactly as if a radiological disaster at Plant Vogtle was real. Today representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Plant Vogtle gathered at Doctors Hospital to evaluate emergency response capabilities in case of an accident or other potentially dangerous situation at Plant Vogtle.
According to FEMA, the Burke County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) and Plant Vogtle, Augusta and surrounding communities are well prepared.
“It went very well,” Miller Birdsong, Emergency Preparedness Manager at Doctors Hospital said, “This is a great learning opportunity and a way to refine our response to radiation disasters in our area.”
The radiation drill gives local EMS agencies and its partners a chance to test their disaster preparedness in various situations, and the benefits of that extend well beyond any potential situation at Plant Vogtle.
Today’s drill, surrounded a fictitious scenario centered around a “farmer” who had fallen from his barn and was possibly contaminated by radiation. The drill required the agencies to demonstrate how they would proceed with notifying residents, communicating with the public, patient decontamination and other necessary responses.
All agencies successfully passed today’s drill.