Overnight evacuation drill taking place Oct. 4 at Innisfil YMCA

Simcoe.com
Sept. 30, 2017
Janis Ramsay

Patrons going for a workout at the Innisfil YMCA shouldn’t be concerned to see people spending the night in the gym.

The County of Simcoe has organized an overnight emergency drill to test agency services in the area.

“As far as we know, this is the only one of its kind in Ontario, and possibly in Canada,” Simcoe County manager of 911 and emergency planning Cathy Clark said.

The drill is nicknamed Compassion in Action and is testing social services and how to run an evacuation centre overnight.

Fifty volunteers are spending the night Oct. 4 on cots at the Innisfil Recreation Complex, under the guise that there has been a significant an ice storm.

Nantyr Shores Secondary School students, Sandy Cove Acres residents, Georgian College and CTS paramedic students are participating.

Even some of the emergency crew’s children will be there to make it realistic.

They have each been given a script to follow, which may contain unexpected medical or emotional reactions to test emergency personnel.

“We want to be sure we really know exactly how to provide the best compassionate care to the most vulnerable in the community,” Clark said.

But if this isn’t tested, they could miss the opportunity to improve.

“It isn’t pleasant for anyone to spend the night on a cot in a gymnasium full of strangers,” Clark said. “With children and teenagers, we know they are out of their element and they might not sleep.”

Which means the involved agencies will have to provide entertainment and comfort for the night.

And given the recent disasters in the United States and Mexico, with earthquakes and hurricanes, it’s a good time to prepare, Clark added.

Red Cross is supplying the cots, Salvation Army is bringing a mobile food truck and staff has to get volunteers through the showers in the morning.

But the Innisfil YMCA will still be open during the emergency exercise, with signage telling people not to be alarmed.

Clark added Barrie, Orillia, Bradford West Gwillimbury and Essa Townships are also taking part in the first day of the evacuation drill.

A debriefing will also happen to talk about successes and unexpected problems.