VCU, city of Richmond conduct full-scale hazmat spill training on campus

By Amelia Heymann and Brian McNeill

Yellow caution tape, ambulances and firetrucks cordoned off the area around the Commons at Virginia Commonwealth University on Thursday morning for a major emergency exercise involving personnel from VCU, the city of Richmond and state and local agencies.

The scenario involved a simulated crash that resulted in the deaths of a truck driver and a pedestrian hit by the truck. The vehicle was transporting chemicals from one of VCU's academic labs, and the crash spilled 60 gallons of methanol and 60 gallons of sulfuric acid in the area, requiring a hazardous-materials response.

There were 17 "victims" of the spill on scene, with volunteers roleplaying as casualties who had sustained various injuries.

The training exercise involved numerous VCU units - the Police Department, Safety and Risk Management, Emergency Communications Center and VCU Health, as well as Public Relations - and they were joined by the Richmond Fire Department, Richmond Ambulance Authority, Richmond Department of Emergency Communications, Richmond Office of Emergency Management, Henrico Fire Department, Virginia Department of Emergency Management and Central Virginia Healthcare Coalition.

More than 150 people participated, including first responders, VCU and city of Richmond staff, and volunteers.

The purpose of the exercise was to evaluate emergency response to a major hazmat incident. VCU Police Chief and Associate Vice President of Public Safety John Venuti said it is important for agencies to work together to assess and validate their capabilities. Such training also provides an opportunity to plan together and work toward a common goal.

"The safety and security of everyone at VCU and in Richmond is a priority for each and every one of us in this room, or you would not be here today - and our partnerships clearly strengthen our ability to keep our community safe," Venuti said in an opening briefing. "In today's exercise, we can practice our responses to an incident involving hazardous materials in a no-fault learning environment. This allows us to showcase our strengths, as well as identify any gaps or areas for improvement."

Firefighters treat volunteers roleplaying as victims of a hazardous material incident on VCU's campus. (Kevin Morley, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

Evaluators assessed participants' ability to:

• Effectively respond to a hazmat spill, including the use of monitoring and testing equipment and personal protective equipment.
• Decontaminate, triage and treat casualties.
• Establish a unified command of multiple agencies to manage a hazmat incident; coordinate the triage, treatment and transport of casualties; and begin recovery efforts.
• Coordinate joint public messaging related to incident response between VCU and neighboring jurisdictions and community members.

VCU regularly hosts full-scale emergency exercises on campus to ensure preparedness. Last year, VCU held an active-shooter training exercise in collaboration with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, the city of Richmond and other partners.

VCU Police officers were among those who participated in the emergency training exercise on the Monroe Park Campus. (Kevin Morley, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

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