As part of its statewide exercise contract for the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM), OGL lead the planning, design, conduct, and evaluation of a regional full-scale exercise at the Virginia Highlands Airport (VHA). The exercise was composed of an eight hour Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) Simulator Training Event, and a three hour Full-Scale Exercise (FSE) conducted at the Virginia Highlands Airport in Abingdon, Virginia.
The Virginia Department of Fire Programs (VDFP) ARFF Training Simulator was used prior to the exercise to train local and regional fire fighters on aircraft firefighting and rescue techniques. There was a total of 82 participants in the ARFF training event. This exercise focused on a mass casualty event at the airport and provided an opportunity for VHA to exercise its emergency operations plans. It also provided an opportunity for Washington County partner organizations, including fire and EMS departments, emergency management, hospitals, and law enforcement to exercise a coordinated response to a major incident at the airport. There was a total of 242 participants in the exercise.
This exercise was used to meet FAA exercise requirements and identify areas for improvement and inclusion in VHA Airport Emergency Plan (AEP) as well as local emergency Operations Plans.