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HomeMy WebLinkAbout3.a. Rosemoount / Koch Training Evaluation ReportCITY OF ROSEMOUNT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FOR ACTION CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: October 01, 1991 AGENDA ITEM: AGENDA SECTION: Rosemount/Koch Training Evaluation Report Department Heads Reports PREPARED BY: Elliel AGENDA 11[W It:3 Knutsen, Chief of Police L ATTACHMENTS: APPROVED BY: Evaluation Reports from the State of Minnesota Although the training exercise was held on July 13, 1991 we just recently received the evaluation reports from the State' of Minnesota Emergency Response Commission. The lead evaluator, Chuck Proft, training officer for the Minnesota Division of Emergency Management, rated the over-all exercise as out- standing. Mr. Proft led four other evaluators. Evaluations were in the area of law enforcement, emergency medical, fire and communications. Our City Administrator, Stephan Jilk, and myself were among- the observers at the exercise and we can attest to the performance of our emergency personnel. The importance of field training along with con-. structive evaluations was shared by all who participated in the event. RECOMMENDED ACTION: None COUNCIL ACTION: ,tSOti 4re/l,r EMERGENCY RESPONSE COMMISSION 175 Bigelow Building = Dfl ti ENI 450 North Syndicate Street V12) Paul, Minnesota 55104 �� PUBII �ff1V ♦��e`sen stst� `era a 11 STATE OF MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY September 6, 1991 Lyle Knutson, Chief Rosemount Police Department Rosemount City Hall w Rosemount, MN 55068 Dear Lyle: Enclosed you will find a draft of the recent Koch Refining Company/WAKOTA C.A.E.R. full scale exercise, as prepared by Mr. Chuck Proft, MN Division of Emergency Management Exercise Training Officer. I understand that Mr. Proft is awaiting the emergency medical services evaluation, and will finalize the report once that is received. As this report is transmitted to you, please allow me to add my formal congratulations on an exemplary performance by the City of Rosemount personnel. Once again, I found the spirit of cooperation displayed by City staff to be nothing short of outstanding. It is obvious to me that Rosemount is sincerely interested in having in place the best possible emergency response system and procedures. Based on what I saw during the exercise, I am convinced that you are in an excellent position to achieve that goal during time of emergency. The one area where I would suggest continued evaluation and further development is that of the on -scene incident command system. I remain concerned about the degree of direct coordination and integration of the roles and responsibilities of the Koch Refining Company and public sector emergency response organizations. I would encourage a re- evaluation of the present system, and would be pleased to assist you with that process in whatever way you believe I may be of service. As always, it has been a pleasure working with you and your staff. I look forward to future opportunities to continue that relationship, and hope that you will feel free to call on me at any t e. Sinc y, l�Dahm Senior Planner PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER WAKOTA C.A.E.R. KOCH REFINING COMPANY/CITY OF ROSEMOUNT FULL SCALE EXERCISE JULY 13, 1991 EVALUATION REPORT EXERCISE EVALUATORS: LEAD EVALUATOR: Chuck Proft Exercise Training Officer Minnesota Division of Emergency Management EVALUATORS: Michael Zurbey Patrol Captain City of Cottage Grove Jeff Frederick Ambulance Supervisor Hennepin County Medical Center Ambulance Jerry Rosendahl Chief Owatonna Fire Department Judy Sullivan Minnesota Department of Public Safety GENERAL COMMENTS: This was the first full scale exercise for the Koch Refining Company and the City of Rosemount and I believe the exercise was outstanding. The exercise was conducted in a very professional and enthusiastic manner and seemed to obtain the goals of the participants. The verbal evaluation, immediately after the exercise, brought forth some excellent and sound suggestions for operational improvements and suggestions for future exercises. EXERCISE DEVELOPMENT; The Wakota C.A.E.R. exercise design team, under the guidance of Bob Dahm, Minnesota Emergency Response Commission, should be commended for the quality exercise and exercise package they produced. See "Full Scale Exercise Staff Information Booklet" attached. THE EMERGENCY OPERATING FACILITY EOF o The EOF was operated in very professional manner. Information was passed around in a timely manner. Problem areas were anticipated and acted upon. Most importantly, a plan was used. o Some kind of a massage board or a status board should be developed for the EOF. This would help document what has occurred in the EOF. SPECIFIC COMMENTS BY THE EVALUATORS: LAW ENFORCEMENT EVALUATION: See comments by Captain Michael D. Zurbey attached. EMERGENCY MEDICAL EVALUATION: See comments by Ambulance Supervisor Jeff Frederick attached. FIRE EVALUATIONS: COMMUNICATIONS EVALUATION: See comments by Chief Jerry Rosendahl and Hazardous Materials Specialist Daniel R. Bigham attached.. See comments by Communications Evaluator Judy Sullivan attached. ;CONDUCT OF THE EXERCISE; �o Verbal exchanges among the players was excellent. o Role play in the EOF was outstanding. o The briefings for the observers at the tent area near the simulation site was professional and well received. o The enthusiasm of the participants was excellent. o The involvement of observers from State agencies, local industries, and non -participating local governments was excellent. OVERALL: Wakota C.A.E.R., and participating local communities should be commended for the quality of their involvement in this exercise. A special commendation should be given to the Koch Refining Company for their involvement in this exercise. A job well done. Charles J. Proft Exercise Training Officer EXERCISE STAFF Exercise Controller: Bob Dahm Senior Planner Minnesota Emergency Response Commission Exercise Safety Officer: Dave Dally Deputy Chief Cottage Grove Fire Department Exercise Simulators: Don Latch Chief Hastings Fire Department Exercise Evaluators: Lead Evaluator: Chuck Proft Exercise Training Officer Minnesota Division of Emergency Management Evaluators: Michael D. Zurhey Zazrol Captain City of Cottage Grove Jeff Frederick Ambulance Supervisor Hennepin County Medical Center Ambulance Jerry Rosendahl Chief Owatonna Fire Department Judy Sullivan Minnesota Department of Public Safety Division of Emergency Management EXERCISE AGENDA 7:30 am Exercise Staff Meeting Koch Refinery - Cafeteria 8:00 am Observers Briefing Koch Refinery - Cafeteria 8:15 am Pre -Staging Completed Vocational College 8:30 am Exercise Begins - Initial Call Koch Refinery 9:00 am Exercise Begins - Off Site Response Koch Refinery 11:00 am Exercise Concludes Koch Refinery 11:15 am Exercise Staff Meeting Koch Refinery - B18 11:30 am Lunch Koch Refinery - Cafeteria 1:00 pm Review and Critique Koch Refinery - Cafeteria 2:00 pm Conclusion ::� 1 EXERCISE GOAL To strategically place equipment, deploy manpower, and flow a sufficient quantity of water to extinguish a major crude oil tank fire. EXERCISE OBJECTIVES 1. Evaluate communications capabilities between public agencies, and private response organizations. 2. Evaluate mutual aid capability to provide personnel and equipment necessary to supplement the specialized resources of the Koch Refining Company. 3. Evaluate coordination between the on -scene incident command system, the Koch Refining Company Emergency Operating Facility, and the City of Rosemount Emergency Operations Center. . Assess the effectiveness of the on -scene incident command system in coordinating the emergency response actions of public and private sector responders. SCENARIO NARRATIVE 9:00 AM, SATURDAY, JULY 13 1991 At 8:30 am, the Koch Refining Company Fire Department is dispatched to Tank #1 after receiving a report of a roof seal fire at that location. The fire is attacked by Koch personnel and appears to be under control within 20 minutes of the initial response. At the time of the initial report, weather conditions are as follows: skies - partly cloudy, temperatures - low 70's, winds - out of the west at 5 miles per hour. The Minneapolis office of the National Weather Service advises that no changes are anticipated. At 8:55 am, the Koch Incident Command at the scene reports that the roof on Tank #1 has collapsed and sunk to the bottom of the tank. The resulting fire is sending flames 200 feet into the air. Heavy smoke conditions are also being reported. Four Koch firefighters are injured at the time of the collapse. Their conditions and the extent of their injuries are unknown. Koch Fire Department personnel are re -grouping to handle the escalating incident. Dakota County 9-1-1 is notified of the emergency at 9:00 am. Access to the refinery is sealed off, with only essential personnel being permitted entry. A major emergency is declared at the plant, resulting in the activation of the Koch Refining Company Emergency Operations Facility (EOF). Mutual aid units from neighboring communities are being dispatched to the scene. PAI City of Cottage Grove DEPARTMENT OF Minnesota PUBLIC SAFETY 11t6 80th Street South t Cottage Grove, Minnesota 55016-3197 612 • 458-2850 Dennis S. Cusick Director of Public Safety Chief of Police July 18, 1991 Charles J. Proft Exercise Training Officer Division of Emergency Management B5 -State Capitol St. Paul, MN 55155 Dear Mr. Proft: James E. Kinsey Captain Administration Michael D. Zurbey Captain Patrol In regards to the Koch Refinery Training Exercise of July 13, 1991, I made the following observations of -the law enforcement response. INITIAL RESPONSE - Reserve Officers were quickly called out State Patrol was contacted right away to coordinate the law enforcement response SCENE SECURITY Officers were stationed at gates close to the scene A squad was assigned to roving perimeter patrol Officers quickly responded to an unknown person call by the fence off Tank 1 I would suggest that one or more officers be assigned to work command post security in future incidents EVACUATION - The Law Enforcement Supervisor initially determined that the tank fire involved crude oil. From checking with fire and Koch personnel, he was able to determine that there was no immediate need for evacuation of surrounding areas but that evacuation may be needed in 10 hours due to the chemical change in the oil at that time. As such, no plans were made for evacuation. TRAFFIC CONTROL - State Patrol was set up to handle the closing of highway traffic - Local police were set up to closedown the frontage road POLICE DIVISION Page 2 Charles Proft July 18, 1991 6 GOING CALL LOAD - The Law Enforcement supervisor did have 2 officers assigned to handle on going call load. He was aware of who he could "break away" from the incident scene if needed to handle other regular police responses. - officers were able to handle a simulated accident involving an officer hit by a car by one of the gates and officers were able to assist with some on scene medicals. OVERALL ORGANIZATION - The Law Enforcement supervisor did have a map of the incident area which listed his personnel. SUMMARY The law enforcement response to this training exercise was organized. It coordinated well with the fire and medical responses to this exercise. Sincerely, Dennis S. Cusick Director of Public Safety Michael D. Zurb Captain MDZ/cce OWATONNA FIRE DEPARTMENT Jerry Rosendahl v� 107 WEST MAIN STREET Fire Chief OWATONNA, MINNESOTA 55060-2913 (507) 451-7400 Mr. Chuck Proft State DEM B-5 State Capital St. Paul, MN 55155 Dear Chuck, I am sorry it has taken this long to get my evaluation back to you on the Wakota CAER exercise held on July 13, but you know how it goes! I have also enclosed comments from Daniel Bigham of Ashland Oil, who I asked to make some comments specifically on the brigade tactics. As in all full scale exercises, it is very tough to "simulate" actual conditions. This makes it tougher on evaluators making judgements on the actions of the participants. All comments are made as "constructive" criticism. I realize there may have been circumstances at the time of the exercise that precluded certain actions by the responders. Summary of comments: 1) Excellent exercise overall. This was a very large scale effort, and the participants, as well as the exercise design team, did very well. 2) Coordination of Koch Brigade and Rosemount Fire Dept. operations needs some work. Ideally, it should be agreed upon in pre- planning who should handle what types of operations. The best type of pre -planning was probably the exercise itself! 31) Transfer of "on site" operations to the Command Post vehicle needs some work. An actual condition would probably be smoother than the exercise since the CP was already on site. 4) Safety officer was assigned early on, which was great. He should have some visible marking, such as a vest. 5) If water supply is a concern, Koch should put in a dry hydrant at the holding pond to speed up the use of that water supply. 6) On site command personnel (both Koch and Rosemount) should have used someone else to operate the radio. They were trying to do a minimum of 3 things at once. 7) Apparently one of the staging cards contained erroneous information. All departments should be urged to be sure the information is correct on their truck staging cards. An Equal Opportunity Employer These comments are relatively minor in nature. As I said, the exercise went very well as far as I'm concerned. Congratulations to Wakota CAER on another job well done! Enc. E City of Cottage Grove FIRE Minnesota DEPARTMENT "41 80th Street South • Cottage Grove, MN 55016 612. 458-2809 Uennis S. Cusick Emil J. Kiossner Director of Public Safety Fire Inspector Denis A. Erickson Fire Chief David W. Dally Deputy Fire Chief July 18, 1991 Chief Jerry Rosendahl Owatonna Fire Department 107 W. Main Owatonna, MN 55060 Dear Jerry: Richard E. Ottman District Chief Dennis L. Leonard District Chief Saturday, July 13th I was invited to observe the Koch C.A.E.R. exercise. As a member of Ashland Oil Fire Brigade for 17 years, I observed Koch's Fire Brigade at Tank #1. With the arrival of Koch's first engine, there was some confusion the engine crew as to how they were going to supply water to their trucks. After the first few minutes Koch Brigade looked like they worked well with other fire departments as they arrived on scene. Below I have listed questions that Koch's Fire Brigade might use as part of their own critique. QUESTION: The use of the Incident Command System (ICS). Communications of fire operations and plant operations need to be separated, buta go-between for plant and fire is needed. QUESTION: The use of various sections, branches and groups. These systems establish a comprehensive and detailed or- ganizional structure in which everyone at the site knows to whom they report and who reports to them. QUESTION: Water application and maximum effect of water supply. Remember - this is a crude tank fire. Was Dry Chemical extinguishing with foam part of your pre -plan. QUESTION: Safety, the use of SCBA's for firefighters going to the top of the tank. Were all sides of the tank being observed. FIRE DIVISION EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER Page 2 QUESTION: Were the fire trucks too close to the tank. Without a real fire it would be hard to answer this question, but everyone should be aware of truck placement, resources and personnel. Overall, I think the drill went well and I hope that all participants recognize that a fire of this type should be incorporated into the planning document. Sincerely, Daniel R. Bi ham, Hazardous Materials Specialist Ashland Oil Company E j July 29, 1991 To: Chuck Proft From: Judith Sullivan Subject: Koch Refinery Drill Attached is the log of events I kept drill on July 13, 1991. I observed Koch fire notifications took place, Patrol command truck. I also spoke along the perimeter. .GUARD SHACK (MAIN GATE) while at the Koch Refinery the guard shack area, where the Koch EOF, and the State with some of the fire rigs Telephone calls are recorded at the guard shack. Koch might want to consider recording the radio, too. At the very least, a formal radio log could be kept. Radio traffic in a situation like this is just as important as the telephones. For liability purposes, a formal record should be kept so that possible future litigation defense does not have to rely on memory. The substitutes called down from the lab to work the guard shack were unfamiliar with basic procedures such as how to open the gate. They were very conscientious about asking questions, and wanted to do the right thing quickly, but sometimes could not. If subs will be called in an emergency, those people could perhaps work a shift in the guard shack on a regular basis to keep current on those procedures. From what I saw, cooperation was not a problem. The subs were very willing to work. Activating the "A" Call List of key supervisors apparently had never been done before this drill. Frank in the guard shack didn't know how to do it. An insert in a training manual would take care of this. Otherwise, Frank was very knowledgeable about things and was quick to convey that to the subs from the lab. KOCH EOF At the Koch EOF, I observed a lot of portable radios turned up so loud that the main person doing radio work had a hard time hearing. Koch has three options here:limit the number of portables in the EOF, enforce rules on volume, or purchase headsets for those who need to listen to essential radio traffic. I noticed that no one at Koch had radio call numbers. It eliminated confusion when a person was called by name on the air. I am used to using numbers, and was impressed by how well the name system worked. The Koch EOF allows for breakout rooms, where staff not directly involved with the immediate happenings can pore over maps and make decisions in relative quiet. I observed four staff members in one of those rooms, keeping up to date by monitoring a portable. This is an excellent idea. The Koch EOF had a large chart with cellular telephone numbers easily readable. It looked much handier to consult that than a sheet of paper. Maps were also readily available. STATE PATROL COMMAND TRUCK The truck was up and running at 0916 hours. At 0929 fire command was called to send a representative. EMS was there, but not in spirit; they dispatched their own units from a portable and interacted very little with the rest of command. There were two dispatchers -one from State Patrol that came with the truck, and one from Rosemount PD. The Rosemount PD dispatcher knew the voices of the personnel, and was able to respond quickly to their requests. The State Patrol dispatcher was at a disadvantage because she did not, yet she still contributed positively to the effort. The idea of having a local dispatcher also in the truck is a very good one. The State Patrol might consider installing a radio that is programmable on site. The Rosemount Fire frequency would have come in handy. Because this was a drill, the truck had been preprogrammed with the Koch frequencies, but the need for Rosemount fire was not foreseen. Regional EMS frequencies would also have been used had they been there. FIRE RIGS ALONG DIKE The fire rigs along the dike were all on the statewide fire channel. As a result, they had to limit their back -and -forth talk. Is there a local fire channel that could be used? Is there a list of which fire units have what frequencies in a county so that in a case of mutual aid the trucks can talk to one another without having to resort to a runner system? GENERAL IMPRESSIONS The initial notification procedure was smooth. Koch has a tiered system in place that works very well. Calls were made promptly. There were too many "commands" on the radio. Dispatchers have a lot to listen to, and cannot recognize every voice on every radio. Identify Fire command, or EMS command, etc. I was impressed with the level of cooperation between Koch and the local agencies. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to evaluate communications. If you have any questions please call. �r Judith Sullivan Evaluator, Communications