DLA Aviation Public Affairs –
Sirens wailed as employees hurried out of their offices at Defense Supply Center Richmond, Virginia, in response to Virginia Department of Emergency Management’s 2017 Statewide Tornado Drill March 21, 2017.
“Whenever there is severe weather, we are responsible to provide safety support to DSCR. We have to dispatch unit to the trailers, child development center, construction sites, and any non-hardened structure so they can shelter in place or evacuate,” said Robert Greene, dispatch project manager contracted with The Greater Richmond ARC, DSCR. “We have to document how many people were evacuated from one location to the new location for accountability.”
Greene explained that the Emergency Communications Center is also responsible for doing mass notifications for all three systems: external system which includes the sirens and loud outdoor speaker system on the installation, and internal system AtHoc system which includes cellphone, email and desktop notifications.
While the drill was being conducted, some basic base operations continued and emergency calls were received at dispatch.
“You have to prioritize the emergencies,” said Greene. “If someone is calling because their car isn’t starting then they will have to wait, but if it’s a real emergency then we will handle both at the same time.” Green explained that if the situation is too severe they can stop the drill, but that’s a last resort.
Although drills may seem like an inconvenience, they can be essential to the safety of all personnel at DSCR. Richard Milligan, deputy chief, Security and Emergency Services, DLA Installation Support at Richmond, explained that conducting drills accomplishes two things.
“First, to test the security and emergency response by making sure our procedures are current and we are doing everything we can to protect the workforce,” said Milligan. “It also gives the workforce the opportunity to participate as if we really did have an event on this installation. We need the workforce to participate and be familiar with what the procedures are to evacuate, if we need them to, for a natural or manmade disaster.”