Mock drill educates and prepares county
A section of the Palacios Community Medical Center was closed Thursday morning for an evaluation medical exercise. South Texas Project, the county and state agencies participated in the mock drill.
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Medical staff made the frightening announcement Thursday morning at the Palacios Community Medical Center.
A South Texas Project employee had fallen into Unit 1 while the refueling was taking place.
Nurses and doctors prepared themselves to receive a patient with possible radiation exposure.
But all this was not real. It was an evaluation medical exercise, where STP emergency response implemented in coordination with Matagorda County and Palacios Community Medical Center.
Drills like these are an important part of the operation to ensure the highest priority to our employees and the community, said Buddy Eller, director of communication and public relations at South Texas Project.
The goal of an emergency is to ensure that everything is coordinated with the city, county and state officials, he said.
Others that participate in the drill include Palacios Community Medical Center, Matagorda County Emergency Management, Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of State Health Services.
“We have teamwork and corporation from everybody and all the different entities that participate help us make this drill a success,” Eller said.
The participants in the drill play a different role, as they participate in each scenario but don’t know what will come next. By working together, they will help find solutions.
During the drill, the hospital sets aside a few rooms and gets them ready for the patient, said Carol H. Hanes, chief executive officer for Palacios Community Medical Center.
From the time the EMS leaves the site, picks up the patient and brings her to the hospital, the hospital is in communication with the ambulance. This gives the hospital time to prepare, she said.
“We do this for the safety of everyone, including our patients. If there is ever a real situation, we want to ensure their safety,” she said.
The drill included a mock press conference, were actors posed as the press and asked Hanes questions.
“We do these types of drills to demonstrate as a county that we can protect the health and safety of our citizens in an event in any radiological release,” said Doug Matthes, emergency management coordinator for Matagorda County.
“This drill is also done to pass the evaluator questions and make sure we measure with FEMA expectations,” he said.
Throughout the mock drill, a FEMA representative is onsite during the drill, evaluating each step. Final results are sent to the county, state and STP.
“STP is such a great partner with the county because they help us train and we take that training and use it to all different hazards training. It is a win-win scenario for the county,” Matthes said.