The scenario for our emergency drill at the NDC on Wed., Feb. 27th, was a simple repair in the co-lab. Shaun Bailey, director of maintenance and operations at WHCC, was doing repair work in the co-lab when an explosion occurred. The result, at least for drill purposes--an evacuation of the center, a locked down child development center, five students injured and the death of West Hills’ employee Shawn Bailey.
Local law enforcement, fire and ambulance responded to the hectic scene as well as the media and curious community members. The Incident Command System (ICS) team assembled quickly and began to deal with all responders to meet the needs of the accident and all involved.
The ICS team is a requirement of the State Emergency Management System (SEMS) and National Incident Management System (NIMS). SEMS was established after the 1991 East Bay Hills fire through Senate Bill 1841. While NIMS was a result of the Homeland Security Act established in 2002 after 9/11.
According to Title 8, CCR 3220, the district is required to have an emergency action plan and has a duty to protect and must ensure employees comply with safe work practices.
The drills we’ve hosted in Firebaugh, Lemoore and Coalinga are all in response to these requirements. Even if you have not been a participant in these drills, you need to be prepared. California Government Code 3100-3109 requires “All public employees are hereby declared to be disaster service worker in the event of a state or local disaster or emergency.”
What’s the best way to prepare for an emergency? There are many. One of the most basic is to be certified in first aid. We offer classes at West Hills that provide certification and a number of local agencies do as well. Also, have a plan on where to go in case of an evacuation—both at work and at home.
Finally, the is a free online training course offered by Federal NIMS Integration Center. The course is offered free-of-charge at: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/crslist.asp.
By the way, Shaun Bailey is fine!
