GARDEN CITY, Ga. - The Georgia National Guard and the Savannah Combat Readiness Training Center hosted a weeklong hurricane exercise, HURREX 2011, earlier this month during which leaders from several state and local emergency response agencies gathered to discuss what their roles would be in a joint reaction to a hurricane striking the Coastal Empire.
Held annually, this exercise forges relationships among the key players of various government agencies that would be called upon to provide relief if Georgians were faced with an actual tropical weather-related emergency, says Lt. Col. Mark London, who coordinated the event and serves as the director of the Guard's Strategic Plans and Policy Office.
"It's all about building and maintaining those relationships now and throughout the year, not just after a situation occurs," said London. "As the Adjutant General [Maj. Gen. William T. Nesbitt] says, 'You don't want to exchange business cards at the scene of a disaster.'"
As the exercise progressed, interagency bonds strengthened while the assembly worked through their joint response to a hypothetical Category 3 hurricane named Vector. The scenario followed a timeline that spanned from the inception of the storm in the Atlantic Ocean and then followed its progress as it "plowed its way up the coastline, eventually making landfall in Chatham County."
Clayton Scott, director of the Chatham Emergency Management Agency, says it is important for various agencies to figure out their needs and capabilities now, before such a disaster occurs. He adds that he is encouraged by the candor and sincerity exhibited by the Georgia National Guard leadership as the partners talked through how to best use their resources in the face of the "real thing."
"All of the people I've met and dealt with from the Georgia Guard are extremely professional," Scott said. "I couldn't have asked for a better audience or for better support if we ever need it, though hopefully we won't."
Besides Scott and CEMA, other agency representatives included those from the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, Glynn County Emergency Management Agency, the Army Corp of Engineers, as well as several local and state law enforcement and fire and rescue departments. Present for the National Guard were representatives from Macon's 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and other Guard elements that would be the first to respond in support of civil authorities in the event of a weather-related disaster.
"This is a great opportunity for the 48th and the Georgia National Guard to work and plan with civilian authorities how we can best support them before, during, and after a catastrophe strikes their communities," said Col. John King, the 48th brigade commander. "What we do, both here and after this exercise ends, only reinforces the Guard's commitment to helping the citizens affected by natural or man-made disasters get back on their feet and put their lives back on track."