Ft Detrick, MD – ATS recently led an exercise called FSE 23 at Fort Detrick in June. The purpose of the exercise was to test and evaluate the installation’s ability to respond to and recover from a natural disaster. The exercise began with a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that caused significant damage to infrastructure, facilities, and roadways in the surrounding area and the installation itself. The earthquake led to various degrees of damage to housing, utilities, and installation facilities. Additionally, an explosion occurred due to a gas line rupture in one facility, resulting in injuries and casualties. As first responders were dealing with the aftermath of the earthquake, an aftershock caused further damage and injuries in another facility.

ATS’s Design Team provided support for 12 months leading up to the exercise, including scenario planning and simulation modeling. The team employed various products to provide a realistic representation of events enhancing the execution of the exercise design. This allowed the installation to effectively test their plans, policies and procedures. They created simulated social media posts and pictures of damaged structures to enhance the exercise’s realism. The complex exercise challenged USAG Fort Detrick to coordinate information from live and simulated sources while synchronizing emergency management efforts among various organizations and local partners. It tested procedures for EOC operations, Incident Command, damage assessment, MASCAL, fatality management, and communication between the installation, local agencies, and Higher Headquarters.

“As a leader in emergency preparedness training and readiness, ATS delivers innovative, experience-based, disaster-preparedness and exercise solutions for local, state, and federal agencies to protect communities. For additional information please visit www.appliedtrg.com.”