Look Who it Was Random video

Hamilton County Hosts Mock Disaster Drill

124 views · Published 25 February 2013 · 2:38 · Indexed 10 November 2026

Channel: WTVC NewsChannel 9 · 2013 · News & Politics

Watch on YouTube

by Alyssa Spirato Natural disasters have pounded our area in the last few years. Sometimes the aftermath is too much to handle for first responders alone. As we've learned, the road to recovery is much more bearable with the help of volunteers.Now, Hamilton County officials are offering training sessions specifically for volunteers. People want to help. A lot of people want to help and in these disasters they sometimes don't know how to help, or all the non-profits in Chattanooga need to know how to use people in the best ways. This was an opportunity for them to see how effective their system is, says volunteer Louise Cook.Cook volunteered when the tornadoes hit the Harrison area March 2nd. It's those kinds of emergencies that Hamilton County workers and volunteers are prepping for Saturday.Dozens of volunteers spent their time taking part in the mock disaster drill.It was interesting to kind of role-play. I got to be chain saw expert which obviously I'm not but it was fun to think about how would they use these different individuals, says Cook.In a real-life disaster volunteers would report to what's called a volunteer reception center. They'd get their assignments then head out into the field.We just put them through a series of different stations that would both capture their data, discover their skill sets and match those skill sets with volunteer requests that we also had fabricated, says Greg Smith with Hamilton County Emergency Management.Here's how it works. Once a volunteer fills out paperwork, they head to station two to begin the interview process. At this point, they have their assignment and are ready to be debriefed on safety. Then they head over to get a volunteer ID.They get equipped with an ID bracelet. There's just one more step before you head out the door. All you need is map and your information entered into a database. After that, you're ready to hit the road.Smith says they hope to host more mock disaster drills in the near future.

More from this channel