Photo By Douglas Stutz | Taking a Seismic Account…Naval Hospital Bremerton earthquake response drill Oct. 15,...... read more read more
It’s not a matter of if, but when.
Seismologists have long affirmed that there will be a sizable earthquake to rock, rumble and roil across the Puget Sound region.
Again.
To take complete account of any such seismic upheaval, NHB simulated a major earthquake the morning of Oct. 15, 2024, and focused a training exercise on conducting a full-scale evacuation with ensuring the whereabouts of all staff, patients and visitors.
“We have to know where everyone is. It’s absolutely crucial. We need 100 percent accountability, whether they are here in the building or off duty or deployed or on leave. It’s crucial. Should the building collapse or portions fall, we have to account for everyone. If we can’t, they could possibly be in those damaged areas. We would then determine if we needed to send fire and rescue or first responder teams to search in that location,” explained Terry Lerma. NHB emergency manager.
The exercise scenario – held in conjunction with Commander Naval Installations Command Citadel Rumble and Operation Dynamo 2024 – featured a mock 7.2 magnitude earthquake that followed a string of faux small tremors since the start of October. There have actually been more than 70 minor seismic events registered over the last several weeks.
“Some seismologists say those little quakes are releasing pressure while others say they could compound stress along a fault. Either way, it’s our responsibility to be ready,” said Lerma. “We have to account for everyone, make sure they’re okay so that they – our physicians, nurses and corpsmen – can care for any casualties.”
Lerma noted that the threat presented from any large quake will present a challenge not only to the staff, but also the actual structure. A military treatment facility hospital provides essential services.
“Earthquakes are on the hazard vulnerability analysis [a risk assessment tool to identify actual emergencies which could readily impact the command] that pose a real potential threat to the building, our staff and patients. An actual quake could very well mean there are mass casualties to deal with. We’ve trained on how to respond to such a need and to do so we have got to know where all our people are,” Lerma said.
The 2001 Nisqually earthquake – with an epicenter approximately 55 miles south of Naval Hospital Bremerton – measured a strong 6.8 magnitude and shook the entire Puget Sound region as the Juan de Fuca Plate shifted deeper into the earth. That upheaval invoked NHB to become the first Navy Medicine and Defense Health Agency hospital to become seismic retrofitted in 2007 to withstand future sizable earthquakes.
The objectives of the exercise were aligned with the six critical areas of the Joint Commission emergency management standards, which were to evaluate the staff’s initial response of drop, cover, and hold, followed by a full-scale evacuation and muster, which included security personnel going from floor by floor, office by office, cubicle by cubicle, of the main hospital building to account for all personnel.
“Did everyone get out safely? Is anyone missing,” openly questioned Lerma to remind others to watch out for their co-workers.
The hospital command center staff were also evaluated for their response. NHB Facilities and Safety department were appraised on their activation and implementation of the rapid emergency assessment plan within 45-60 minutes of when the exercise started. “We’re looking at structural integrity. We’re looking to see if gas lines, or sewer lines, are severed. Is the water main broke? We have to check for a lot of possibilities,” Lerma said.
Command communication with Naval Base Kitsap was measured along with the timely use of the command’s mass notification system to inform staff to evacuate the medical treatment facility. “Maybe our internal public address circuit is out of service. Maybe cell towers are knocked down. We’ll use multiple ways to inform and update our staff. We even have satellite phone and ham radio capability,” noted Lerma.
There was even a mock press conference held with the incident commander and acting commanding officer.
“It gave our incident commander and commanding officer the experience of having to deal with the media if there is a real emergency event, not just an earthquake,” explained Lerma. “Just as we train to respond to any actual incident, we also prepare on how to properly reply with timely, accurate information, which is key to getting the command’s actions, intent, and status to staff and patients.”
As Lerma attests, preparation is key before any emergency. Even though there were no reported injuries in the mass evacuation, Urgent Care Clinic staff were proactive to bring medical treatment gear and a casualty tent was still set up to handle any casualties.
“And disasters are emergencies we weren’t prepared for. Drilling on what to do when an earthquake strikes, and then how to safely and correctly evacuate will build that muscle memory so when a significant earthquake happens, the staff will react as they are trained to do,” Lerma stressed.
Descriptor Richter Magnitudes Earthquake Effects
Micro Less than 2.0 Micro earthquakes. Not felt. It’s estimated there’s approximately 8,000 a day.
Very minor 2.0-2.9 Generally, not felt but recorded. About a thousand a day.
Minor 3.0-3.9 Often felt, rarely causes damage. Estimated about 49,000 happen each year.
Light 4.0-4.9 Noticeable shaking of indoor items, rattling noises. Significant damage unlikely. Some 6,200 a year take place.
Moderate 5.0-5.9 Can cause major damage to poorly constructed buildings. 800 yearly. Example: The 1987 Whittier Narrows 5.9 quake in southern San Gabriel Valley caused $358 million in damage. A 5.5. magnitude quake on the Quebec-Ontario border in Canada caused little damage.
Strong 6.0-6.9 Approx. 120 a year, each can be destructive in areas up to about 100 miles across in populated areas.
Example: The 1994 Northridge earthquake, registered 6.7, considered a moderate quake, but the ground acceleration (earth shaking) was the highest ever instrumentally recorded in an urban area in North America. As a result, the damage caused was extensive - $35 billion.
Major 7.0-7.9 Can cause serious damage over larger areas. Estimated there’s 18 per year.
Example: The Great Hanshin Earthquake on Japan in January 1995 measured 7.2, caused 6,433 deaths, and cost 10 trillion yen (exchange rate then was 98.58 to US$1) to repair all the damages.
Great 8.0-8.9 Can cause serious damage in areas several hundred miles across. Frequency of occurrence is one per year.
2006 quake registering 8.1-magnitude struck an area in the northern Pacific, in an area claimed by both Russia and Japan, and caused a series of small tsunami waves to hit Hokkaido, forced locals to evacuate, yet did not swell higher than 23 inches. Yet a similar sized-quake struck off the coast of Mexico in 1985 and caused at least 9,000 people deaths, with over 30,000 injured, and 100,000 left homeless.
Rare great 9.0 or greater Rare devastation writ large
Example: Dec. 2004: The Indian Ocean quake, which registering a magnitude of 9.1-9.3. The epicenter was off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, caused a series of gigantic tsunamis that caused more than 229,000 fatalities in many nations along the Indian Ocean from Thailand to East Africa. Waves of approximately 30 meters (98 feet) slammed into Banda Ache on the extreme northwest corner of Sumatra.
| Date Taken: | 10.15.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 10.16.2024 09:41 |
| Story ID: | 483211 |
| Location: | BREMERTON , WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 99 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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