Emergency drill in Horseheads tests first responders

• Drill involved Horseheads and Elmira fire departments and Hazmat team.
• Drill included a smoke machine to simulate conditions.
• No real chemicals involved.

HORSEHEADS – On Tuesday, employees of Eaton Corp. in Horseheads were alerted to a chemical spill in the warehouse.

Sodium was leaking from a pipe and required immediate attention as it was unclear what chemical reaction would occur.

But the alert was only part of a drill. No real chemicals were involved. No employees were endangered. And the surrounding workspace was completely safe for the employees.

The drill was a training exercise for area first responders to practice skills they don't normally have to demonstrate.

"Situations like these don't occur often, but it is important for the responders to practice, so that their skills and plans can be tested in an event that closely reflects the real deal," said Kristin Card-Griffin, deputy director of administration for the Chemung County Office of Fire and Emergency Management.

"We simulate these training exercises every couple of years so that responders can practice real-life situations."

Tuesday's scenario was meant to be as real as possible. A smoke machine was used to replicate the severity of the situation and weighted mannequins w

ere used as victims of the incident with several sites for decontamination as they moved from a "Hot Zone"(where they are close to the chemicals) to a "Warm Zone" (where they are being decontaminated) to a "Cold Zone" (where no chemicals are present).

Responders tested their equipment on common chemicals that are used in the building.

"Haz Mat's job is to control the situation and return it back to normal," Card-Griffin explained. "The employees respond first and if it's beyond their scope then the Horseheads Fire Department is called in, and if it is beyond their scope then the Elmira Fire Department and Haz Mat Team is called in and, so on and so forth."

The training develops skills and improves relationships, she said.

"They need to gain the knowledge on what to do in these types of situations," she said. "No matter what happens, when they leave here today, they will be one step higher and a bit more prepared than they were yesterday. It's important for industries and companies to establish a relationship with the responders because you never know just what to expect."