[KYHAM] Lexington Hams Take Part in Weapons of Mass Destruction Exercise

[Pat Spencer, KD4PWL]

Amateur Radio Operators Take Part in WMD Drill
Lexington, KY
4/18/02

Since September 11, 2001 government agencies have renewed their emphasis on 
local civil preparedness.  The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 
and Department of Justice Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) program is no 
exception.

On April 18, 2002, a WMD exercise was help in Lexington, KY.  This drill 
included local law enforcement, fire, emergency medical agencies, hospitals 
and amateur radio operators providing communications for emergency management.

Fayette County Amateur Radio Emergency Service assisted the Division of 
Environmental and Emergency Management with coordinating communications 
regarding triage, transportation, and status of victims in the 
exercise.  Operators were stationed at the incident site, with government 
officials, at local hospitals, and in transportation vans that carried the 
victims.

The exercise simulated a lewisite device being detonated in downtown 
Lexington two blocks from busy Main Street.  Lewisite is a chemical blister 
agent that causes severe injuries and death to those exposed to it.

Amateur radio operators were presented with a number of challenges and 
unknowns during the exercise.  Like a real emergency, they started with 
very little information.  Starting from this point, they were assigned to 
go to hospitals, provide communications for the patient transport vans, and 
to provide communications for emergency management officials.

Another challenge presented to the operators was the lack of a fixed point 
to utilize as a net control station.  The net control station was also 
assigned to an official who was highly "pedestrian mobile" to and from the 
incident site, and government buildings.
This presented problems, but despite some confusion all necessary 
communications between the hospitals, vans and the incident site went 
fairly smoothly.

This is the first time that operators have been involved in such a scenario 
in Lexington.  This is first response in memory where operators were 
stationed at hospitals.  Many of the hospital coordinators were very 
surprised at their first exposure to amateur radio.

The exercise was productive for all the agencies involved, amateur radio 
included.  This was a testing ground to discover possible weak points in 
methods used for communication.  Problems that were identified from an 
internal analysis, and input from outside observers will prove valuable to 
sharpen the skills of those operators who participated, and to strengthen 
the overall efficiency of the local ARES organization.

It is far better to identify possible problems in an exercise than to find 
out about them during a real emergency.

The ARRL Public Service Activity Report from the exercise activation is 
included below.
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1. Nature of activity (Check one).
Test or drill. A training activity in which amateurs participated.

2. Brief description of activity:
Weapons of Mass Destruction Drill for local government under the auspices 
of FEMA and Dept. of Justice.

3. Places or areas involved: Lexington, KY
4. Number of amateurs participating: 15
5. Event start date/time: 04/18/02 07:30
6. Event end date/time: 04/18/02 14:00
7. Duration of event: 6.5
8. Total man-hours: 97.5
9. Number of repeaters used: 1
10. Estimated manpower cost:        	$  975
11. Estimated cost of equipment used:	$ 8000
12. Total estimated cost of service:    	$ 8975

13. Nets and/or frequencies used (including repeater call signs):
444.125+ (KB8QLC)

14. Number of messages handled: 0 NTS, 100+ excercise related

15. Names of agencies receiving communications support:
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Govt Division of Environmental
and Emergency Management

16. Please list call signs of amateurs who were major participants:
All participants deserve equal notice because everyone went above
and beyond at more than one point in the exercise.
WA4WWH, KE4FFQ, KQ4ZZ, KB8QLC, KA4MKG, KG4LFP, WA8FJK, N4DIT, N4MOM,
KF4URQ, WA4UIV, KE4MAI, KN4S, KA4KYI and KD4PWL

17. Other comments:
In this exercise, we were presented with several challenges.  Like
and actual emergency, we were not presented with a lot of information
about what was going to take place.

Timing was very difficult because many things were occurring at once.
Trying to mobilize the hospital units to the ER's, and getting the
vans mobilized carrying the patients.

Net control was very chaotic due to the fact that there was no fixed
location from which KD4PWL could use as the control point.  He was
forced to perform duty as NCS, and a shadow of a "foot mobile"
government official.  This created confusion, and created a situation
where the net was controlled by an HT station.  This matter was brought
to the attention of government officials in an after-event evaluation.

All matters concerned, it was a productive exercise as it educated
amateur radio operators, and government officials to the needs of
the scenario, and what facilities amateur radio requires.  We learned
several procedural lessons.

Name of Amateur Radio organization providing service:
Fayette County Amateur Radio Emergency Service.

Location of organization: City or town: Lexington, KY
Your name: Pat Spencer, KD4PWL