UTC holds emergency management exercise on its campus

Emergency personnel respond to a training exercise involving an explosion in the back portion of UTC's Frist Hall early this morning.

Photo by Dan Henry.

Four fire trucks, two ambulances, an EMS vehicle and several police cars converged on UTC’s campus this morning for an emergency management exercise.

The exercise simulated a gas explosion in one of the campus dorms. Emergency personnel blocked roads, set up a command post, rescued and treated ‘victims’ and handled bystanders.

The goal of the exercise, Assistant Director of University Relations Cindy Carroll said, was to better prepare for any real emergency in the future.

“An emergency-preparedness plan is never a static document,” she said. “We need to refresh and keep accurate on all of our skills and responding to any type of emergency.”

Both local and out-of-state evaluators observed the exercise and will help show the emergency personnel what their strengths and weaknesses are, she added.

Read more in tomorrow’s Times Free Press.