WIPP EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

EMERGENCY RESPONSE TRAINING & EXERCISES

PURPOSE;  Ensure adequate protection of human health, property, and environment from those risks posed by a WIPP transportation emergency. Clarifying roles and responsibilities of affected federal, state, local and tribal entities in the areas of WIPP transportation emergency preparedness and response.  Train and rehearse emergency response personnel at the federal, state, local and tribal levels of government to safely and effectively respond to and assist in mitigating a WIPP transportation emergency.  The nexus of emergency responders are fire and rescue teams, hospital emergency room personnel, law enforcement, volunteer emergency responders, and governmental officials.  Full-scale exercises are coordinated through the State’s Homeland Security, with active participation by the Radiation Control Bureau.

A full-scale exercise is a lengthy exercise which takes place on location, using-as far as possible-the equipment and personnel that would be called upon in a real WIPP Transportation accident.  A full-scale exercise is:

1. An interactive exercise designed to challenge emergency management systems in a highly realistic and stressful environment.
2. Tests and evaluates most functions of the emergency management operational plans
3. Achieves realism through:
   1. On-scene actions and decisions
   2. Simulated “victims”
   3. Search and rescue requirements
   4. Communication devices
   5. Equipment deployment
   6. Actual resource and personnel allocations

WIPPTRAX EXERCISE-Gallup

TRAINING: In coordination with other Task Force agencies, the Radiation Control Bureau (RCB) is in action with the State Fire Marshall Office (fire fighters), Motor Transportation Division (port-of-entry inspectors), and Department of Health (hospitals) in supplementing their expertise in areas of radioactive materials awareness, hazard analysis, and use of radiation instrumentation.

In New Mexico there are fourteen (14) hospitals, on the designed WIPP route, that have been identified as potential providers of medical care to injured patients involved in a radiological incident, including a WIPP Transportation incident.

Physicians managing persons contaminated with radioactive materials will have varying responsibilities depending on their primary roles, previous training, locations, facilities, and radiation monitoring capabilities.  An important question is whether any involved person(s) have been exposed to external or internal radioactive contamination.  To resolve this problem, radiation monitoring equipment must be available either at the accident location or the hospital.  At the Department of Health’s, Operations Level Classes, WIPP/Hazardous Materials Hospital Training:  Decontamination and PPE Workshop, the RCB conducts instruction, at this workshop, training hospital personnel on the radiation instrumentation that is provided to hospital on the WIPP corridor route.

Back To Radiation Control WIPP Page

For information regarding this page, contact Carl Sullivan of the Bureau at carl.sullivan@state.nm.us.