Deployments and Hurricanes: an exercise

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Zachary Cacicia
  • 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Hundreds of Team Dover Airmen are in the midst of deploying to the Pacific and a potentially devastating storm, coined Hurricane "Delmarva," barrels down on Dover Air Force Base. How does Team Dover respond?

Fortunately, this situation is just a base-wide exercise. Nevertheless, Team Dover tested its capabilities to respond to emergency scenarios during a Deployment/Hurricane Exercise (HURREVAC) May 15 to 20, 2015, here.  

"The exercise starts with a deployment piece and it follows up with a hurricane scenario," said Maj. Brandon Stock, 436th Airlift Wing Inspector General chief of exercises. "Wednesday we'll see a table top event with State agencies."

The exercise initiated on Friday, May 15 with a deployment exercise, where throughout the weekend, hundreds of Airmen process through deployment lines. This process would allow them to better understand what they may experience during an actually mass deployment.

While this deployment line process was ongoing, a hypothetical Hurricane Delmarva formed in the Atlantic Ocean; it slowly paralleled the East Coast and headed toward Dover AFB, potentially threatening the base, its personnel and materials. Base leadership determined that a partial evacuation was necessary to assure the safety of Team Dover personnel. This evacuation required all personnel who live on base, those who reside off base in mobile homes, and those who reside in proximity to coastal waters/storm surge areas to simulate evacuating the Dover area.

The exercise also threw the base a few curveballs, as a simulated armed robbery occurred at the 436th Comptroller Squadron and a C-5M Super Galaxy was forced to abort take-off after a bird strike damaged the aircraft. Though these scenarios are unlikely to occur all at once, they do keep the base prepared to perform at its best if any of these scenarios were to happen. 

"It's kind of a worst-case scenario," said Dave Johnson, 436th AW/IG deputy director of inspections. "We're getting ready to deploy and a storm comes through; what's the Wing going to do?"

Separate from exercise itself, the Table Top event will allow for discussion on current plans, policies and procedures as it relates to local, state and federal responses to a hurricane affecting the State of Delaware. This event is primarily being put on by the active duty 436th AW, with support from the Reserve 512th AW. Off base agencies that are participating include: the Delaware Emergency Management Agency, the Delaware National Guard, the Defense Coordinating Element (CDE) Region III, U.S. Northern Command and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

"Basically, it's academic learning on how the National Response Framework operates and how the nation responds to natural disasters and emergency management scenarios; we learn what each organization is capable of," said Stock.

This is the first time each of these agencies will come together in this capacity. According to Stock, this Table Top exercise will allow each organization to better understand how their counterparts operate, and how they will work together if ever it becomes necessary.