An earthquake along the New Madrid Fault has just hit the Midwest, devastating many communities.
In St. Louis, bridges have collapsed, roads are twisted, and buildings are crumbling. More than 40,000 people are trapped in Busch Stadium. Moments after the rumbling stops, hundreds of first responders scour the city on search and rescue missions.
That’s the kind of approach needed to save lives, said Maj. Kelly Hudson, project officer for Michigan-based National Guard Task Force 46, which this week co-led emergency response training in the St. Louis region.
“That's somebody's mother, father, brother, sister that's trapped inside. It could be yours,” Kelly told participants in the training exercise. “So there's a lot of empathy there. That's one of the things you want to train on … I love that you want to run to the sound of the gunfire, but we've got to do that methodically so that it's a marathon, not a sprint.”
With that in mind, more than 500 local, state and federal emergency personnel took part in the disaster preparedness drill Monday through Wednesday so they would be prepared for a magnitude 8.4 earthquake across the New Madrid fault.
The St. Louis Area Regional Response System also hosted the training.
“This needs to happen,” said Jocelyn Evans, emergency preparedness planner for St. Charles County. “When the earthquake does happen, it's going to be a bad, bad day for everyone. So as much practice and preparedness we can give our responders … that's what we need.”
Under the scenario, first responders transported victims from the stadium to a nearby parking lot. Hundreds of crisis actors and stretcher-bound mannequins were doused with water in a portable chemical decontamination shower.
“You cannot simulate this type of scenario with just mannequins,” said Farrell Flynn, a faux-bloodied volunteer victim. “We mostly do live action role-playing, just act like you're injured.”
Military and air-evac helicopters rehearsed the route to local hospitals. There, health care professionals treated simulated injuries from falling brick and airborne chemicals.
Emergency personnel also practiced an alternate route across the Mississippi River, in case the Eads and Clark bridges fall. Members of the Army and National Guard dropped portable roads from helicopters near the Grafton ferry dock.
“We came out here to train … to actually put our heart and minds into this, “ said Sgt. Conrad Kruger of the Texas National Guard. “That way when – if it does happen, we are prepared mentally, physically and emotionally.”
Missouri and Illinois emergency management agencies participated alongside 40 local groups, including the St. Louis police and fire departments. The full-scale drill was the largest military training in St. Louis, according to event organizers.
“St. Louis is due for an earthquake,” Hudson said. “We know that infrastructure is aging, it's not getting any younger. If we had another earthquake like we've had before, diverting the flow of the Mississippi, it could be potentially catastrophic.”
