PROGRAMS AND EVENTS

NEMA Emergency Response Exercise

Date: March 26, 2009
Venue: Abuja

NEMA official points out something of interest to EPA instructor Michael Solecki

On March 26, the Nigerian Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in collaborations with the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, staged a mass casualty exercise involving a simulated aircraft crash at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

The exercise was a culmination of three weeks of training on Incident Command System (ICS) conducted by 2009 U.S. Science Fellow and United States Environmental Protection Agency on Scene Coordinator Michael Solecki.  The operation, which brought together emergency responders from 28 agencies and the private sector, involved over 500 victims, responders, and the deployment of a wide array of emergency equipment and logistical support.

According to Air Vice Marshall Audu-Bida, the Director General of NEMA, the exercise was the “first of its kind” in Nigeria and he thanked the U.S. Government for the crucial technical assistance in enhancing Nigeria’s emergency preparedness.  The U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Lisa Piascik praised the U.S.-Nigeria collaboration and described the exercise as "very impressive."

Over a three-day period preceding the exercise, U.S. Science Fellow Solecki guided unit commanders in putting together the plan, logistics, communication, and operational aspects of the mock exercise.  The staged accident involved a Boeing 727 aircraft with 125 passengers and crew onboard that caught fire upon making an emergency landing due to a bird-strike.  The airport air traffic controller activated the airports’ emergency response system, which led to the activation of the National Emergency Response System.  Hundreds of responders from the fire department, the police, the Air Force, the Army, the Red Cross, the Federal Road Safety Commission, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Force and paramedics from various hospitals secured the area, put out the fire, and rescued and evacuated passengers to two area hospitals.   The press was briefed on the “accident” and the emergency response underway by a designated press officer.

After the simulation exercise, unit commanders from all participating organizations attended a two-hour debriefing with pre designated observers who provided honest and constructive criticism on each aspect of the emergency response operation.  U.S. Science Fellow Michael Solecki also gave his assessment and encouraged the Government of Nigeria to adopt a National Emergency Management System that can be used for any type of emergency scenario.   At the conclusion, NEMA Director General Audu-Bida thanked all participating organizations for their efforts and the U.S. Government for its assistance.  He promised to conduct more simulated exercises based on different scenarios using the system that the U.S. helped put together.