Plans, Exercises, Drills & Training

The Gaston County Emergency Management Administrator is the Emergency Planning Administrator for the county.

The Emergency Management Administrator will:

  • Participate in training personnel for emergency planning.
  • Ensure this plan and supporting agreements are reviewed and updated on an annual basis and ensure proper distribution by posting to the EPlan package on the internet. Any update will take into account the need for changes identified by actual drills and exercises.
  • Ensure that all corrective actions identified as a result of actual events, drills, exercises and annual reviews are coordinated with the affected agencies, that realistic suspense dates are established and followed up to maintain this plan in a current state of preparedness.
  • Ensure that all local agencies/organizations that are assigned responsibilities in this plan maintain appropriate written guidelines.
  • Ensure emergency telephone numbers are maintained in a current status.

Radiological Emergency Response Training

A training program for instructing and qualifying personnel who will implement the response plan for Gaston County will include the following personnel: Gaston County Emergency Management Administrator.

  • Gastonia Fire Haz-Mat and GEMS/STAR personnel.
  • Incident assessment and damage control personnel.
  • Police, fire, rescue, and medical support personnel.
  • Personnel and dispatchers are responsible for emergency information and instructions.

Initial training and retraining of personnel will be done annually. Duke Energy Company and State personnel will provide training assistance.

Included in this training will be:

  • Notification procedures.
  • Basic radiation protection.
  • Expected roles in support of radiological emergency response plans.
  • The Fundamentals Course for Radiological Monitoring.
  • For those local support organizations who will enter the site, training will also include site access procedures and on-site control procedures.

Drills

Periodic communications drills will be conducted with Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Catawba, Gaston, Iredell, and Lincoln counties (McGuire Nuclear Station) and Mecklenburg, Gaston, and York SC. counties (Catawba Nuclear Station).

Annual communications drills may be conducted between Gaston County EOC, the State EOC, the McGuire and Catawba Nuclear Stations, and the field assessment teams.

An annual medical emergency drill involving simulated transportation and treatment of radiologically contaminated patients will be conducted on a rotation basis with the primary and backup hospitals.

In conjunction with the annual refresher training, radiological monitoring drills will be conducted.

Qualified observers will evaluate all of the above drills.

Tabletop exercises and emergency operations simulations will be conducted as needed.

Exercises

Exercises will be conducted on an annual basis rotating between Catawba and McGuire sites under the authority of Federal Regulation 44 CFR 350. The scenario will differ from year to year to ensure that all major elements of response are tested within a six-year period.

There will be varied starting times for exercises to assure that at least one exercise will begin between 6 pm and 4 am every six years.

Some exercises will be conducted during adverse weather conditions.

Some exercises will be unannounced.

The Extent of Play document for each exercise may include:

  • The exercise objectives and evaluation criteria.
  • Date, times, and participating organizations.
  • Simulated events and a time schedule of real and simulated events.
  • An off-site release or potential therefore to assure response by Gaston County's emergency services. These services will be listed in the narrative of the scenario.
  • Evaluation and Critique.
  • A critique will be held as soon after the exercise as possible by Federal, State, and local qualified observers.
  • All participating organizations will correct areas of concern as soon as practical.