Military Trains with Wisconsin Hospitals in Groundbreaking Disaster Drill
The fake scenario on Wednesday created hundreds of thousands of fictional casualties and the need for decontamination.
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The southeastern Wisconsin area was chosen as the site of a groundbreaking military exercise involving a simulated chemical attack or disaster.
"A large-scale radioactive explosive device (and) a dirty bomb have gone off at Miller Park," said Doug Birlingmair, ProHealth Care Preparedness Director at Waukesha Memorial.
That was the fake scenario on Wednesday that created hundreds of thousands of fictional casualties and the need for decontamination.
"Because of those casualties, the hospitals are overrun. Our resources are exhausted. We've gone through our county resources, and now have gotten to the point where we need federal aid," Birlingmair said.
Operation Red Dragon is an exercise.
"This is very close to what reality would look like," Maj. Scott Heil said.
In all, more than 3,000 troops from a specialized unit from South Carolina were on hand across the area in preparation for the worst.
"It's a fantastic opportunity for the military and the civilians. Again we are simulating what would happen if there was an incident so it's great training for us and great training for them," Heil said.
"They have their own way of doing things that might be a little bit different from the civilian side so we just need it to interact with each other," Birlingmair said.
What played out at Waukesha Memorial on Wednesday also happened at several other Milwaukee-area hospitals.
"The purpose of this exercise is for the civilian hospitals and the military to work together," said Elizabeth Corneliuson, Wisconsin Hospital Emergency Coordinator.
The goal was to communicate well, create future practices and save lives.
Hospitals in 10 Wisconsin counties are involved in this two-day drill.
About 30 troops were at Waukesha Memorial, where organizers were excited to be a part of putting their skills to the test.
"This is a terrific opportunity for us to practice our own policies and procedures, the military to practice their policies and procedures," Birlingmair said. And this is the largest exercise of its kind in the nation this year, so we really feel special."
Organizers of the exercise wanted to stress there would be no interruption of any normal hospital services or staffing at any of the hospitals involved.
A complete rundown of the participating hospitals and times is as follows:
Wednesday, June 17
7:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare All Saints, Racine
8 a.m. - 11 a.m. Columbia St. Mary's, Ozaukee
8 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. St. Agnes Hospital
8 a.m. - 12 p.m. Waukesha Memorial
9 a.m. - 12 p.m. Waupun Memorial Hospital
10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Aurora Sheboygan Medical Center
12 p.m. - 5 p.m. Aurora Medical Center Washington County
1 p.m. - 4 p.m. Children's Hospital - Wisconsin
1 p.m. - 4 p.m. Froedtert Hospital
Thursday, June 18
5 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Oconomowoc Memorial
