Part of the problem this time was that for a practice exercise, not all resources can be put in place exactly as they would be if it were a real emergency, said Auglaize County Emergency Management Agency Director Troy Anderson.
The Local Emergency Planning Committee recently reviewed the joint exercise with Logan County held June 20.
“It went extremely well,” Anderson said.
The state has approved a rough draft of the exercise which was submitted by the county and cost approximately $775 to perform.
“There were problems there, but we worked well together,” Anderson said. “It was a real test of the system.”
He said some of the communication trials included cell phone service with hit and miss signals and interference in the area with communications at the scene.
The MARCS (Multiagency Radio Communication System), which should improve interoperability between agencies at the scene, had its first real test and Anderson said it worked without any problems.
Members of the LEPC and the community assisted with establishing a shelter, providing food and other resources. Other LEPC members worked in communication and transportation, with hazardous materials, public information and law enforcement.
Michael Wurst, who heads the Medical Reserves Corps, said it was the first exercise for the group to participate in and it was a real eye opener, showing them ways they can improve.                                                                                                                                            “It gives us a chance to work with the departments that we don’t get to work with on a day-to-day basis,” Anderson said.
He said they aim to do a full-scale exercise every four years, as required by the state.
This time they did a mock bus crash in Auglaize County and responded to a bomb explosion in the stadium at Indian Lake High School.
The exercises are used to update the county emergency plan every year. Every four years, a total of 13 objects need to be met. The fourth year, the Emergency Management Agency tries to plan a full-scale exercise to encompass several of those objectives.