Honolulu International Airport Conducts Triennial Emergency Response Exercise
10/05/11 - The DOT's Airports Division's "live fire" exercise today, was a Federal Aviation Administration certification requirement, testing the state's response preparedness and communications capabilities in the event of an actual emergency.
Over 250 student volunteers played the role of injured passengers.
The state Department of Transportation, Airports Division, conducted a triennial emergency response exercise at the Honolulu International Airport this morning Wednesday, October 5, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The realistic exercise was a Federal Aviation Administration certification requirement to test airfield disaster preparedness and response and simulated the crash of a commercial airliner at the airport. Approximately 250 volunteers from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Hawaii Pacific University, Chaminade University and airport personnel assisted and played the role of the injured. The exercise included a live-fire simulation.
“An organized response to critical emergencies requires regular exercises such as this one to ensure that all agencies work as a single team,” said Governor Neil Abercrombie “The exercise gives our first responders a real-world scenario that tests their response times and inter-agency communications.”
Participating agencies included the Honolulu International Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting teams, Honolulu Fire Dept., American Medical Response, State Civil Defense, Federal Fire Fighting Teams, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Federal Aviation Administration, American Red Cross, Hawaii Air National Guard, National Guard, and United States Coast Guard.
All flight operations continued as normal during the exercise.
