A plane crashes at Easterwood Airport, social media starts buzzing, and Texas A&M University staff, local law enforcement, emergency management teams, firefighters and public information officials swing into action. As information begins to trickle out, news media arrive and officials work to inform and protect the public as a dangerous situation begins to unfold.
Fortunately this is only a test, one of a number of emergency simulation exercises conducted by the university in conjunction with area law enforcement agencies and emergency responders.
In this particular scenario a plane taking off unexpectedly accelerates during take-off and crashes. Terrorism is suspected.
Realistic exercises like this allow emergency personnel to rehearse and improve response to best prepare for real-life incidents. Several response areas are tested including operational coordination, communications, public relations and warning, and medical services.
Dozens of “victims,” sporting very realistic-looking injuries, are carted off to local hospitals, while law enforcement, including University Police Department, Bryan and College Station Police, and the FBI continue to work the crash site.
After it’s all over, Texas A&M officials conduct a mock press conference.
“Today’s full-scale emergency exercise at Texas A&M reflects the steadfast commitment that members of law enforcement, medical professionals and our staff share in the safety and security of our campus and the community,” says Texas A&M President Michael K. Young. “I am grateful today, as always, for the time and effort that they invest in preparedness for events that we hope will never happen but need to be ready for nonetheless.”
Christopher Meyer, the university’s assistant vice president for Safety and Security, says the exercises are invaluable for emergency personnel and the community at large, and much effort goes into planning.
“Major exercises like these take a year to plan and execute. We have numerous entities taking advantage of the opportunity to train in this type of large-scale simulation.”
Multiple modes of communication were used to relay information to the public during the simulation, among them, the university’s emergency notification system “Code Maroon.”
The emergency procedures used were in accordance with both the Brazos County Inter-jurisdictional Emergency Management Plan and the Texas A&M University Emergency Operations Plan.
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