Facts: Operation Red Rail is an exercise for University officials to practice reacting to a train derailing on campus. The University has one of these exercises every year.
Opinion: University officials should take this exercise very seriously and improve their internal communication skills and evacuation coordination. After assessing the results, this will ensure a plan is in place to make sure students and employees are safe.
While students are just waking up for their 8:30 classes, a train will derail on campus. But they won’t have to worry, because University departments will be exercising their emergency response skills.
Operation Red Rail gives University departments the opportunity to respond to these cataclysmic events, with little to no interruption to normal University functions. University officials should still take it very seriously for the sake of students and employee safety, and University continuity.
A similar exercise was organized on March 13, 2007 and 196 people participated in the event. Although the results of this exercise showed that the University officials were quick to establish communication and deal with hazardous materials, they were still advised to improve their internal communication efficiency, and establish multiple evacuation sites for residence halls.
Since a train track runs right through campus, a train derailment would create a situation that would be chaotic and very difficult to handle in reality. After this initiative, University officials from the disaster management departments should get a better idea of what to expect during this situation and they will be better prepared to react in the future. We are glad that these officials are required to participate in this training to make sure the University and all departments and agencies are prepared in case of a situation like this.
University officials should be making their own notes as the exercise is going on. Identifying weaknesses will be important and making sure the University departments aren’t making the same mistakes. This will make sure students’ and employees’ safety is not compromised in the future.
Exposure to such situations in a simulated setting is the most efficient way to prepare for such a disaster. In a controlled environment, there is no chance of a real life-threatening failure. Failure, however, will indicate the University officials will need to quickly put their heads together to make sure a plan is in place.
One of the goals of such an exercise is to demonstrate N.C. State’s capability to communicate effectively. Communication to emergency services, students, faculty members, staff and other members of the community is the key to such a situation. It makes students feel safe on campus, because at the back of their mind they know if such a situations can be simulated, it would be managed efficiently if it occurs in reality.
This exercise will prove whether there have been improvements since the previous one, at the same time it will highlight a number of flaws in the current system as well. Some of the things like communication efficiency, campus evacuation capabilities etc. would be effectively tested during this exercise.
They will make the student community feel safe on campus and at the same time prepare emergency services to manage disastrous situations better. The more they practice the safer we are.
