NIAGARA COUNTY: After Spaulding Fibre, National Guard moved on to Lockport

By Britney Milazzo

Following their successful drilling at Spaulding Fibre in the City of Tonawanda, hundreds of National Guard troops and civilian emergency responders continued their earthquake training, shifting their focus Wednesday to Lockport.

Their training still focused on a 5.9 magnitude earthquake striking in Niagara Falls, with Wednesday’s efforts focused on toxic chemicals leaking from a plant in the quake’s aftermath. The Tonawanda training involved rescuing persons trapped in a collapsed hospital.

Wednesday’s training scenario took place in a vacant portion of Commerce Square, the former Harrison Radiator plant, 210 Washburn St. It was all part of the Vigilant Guard activities, a week-long event that mimics disaster conditions to train National Guardsmen and first responders from New York, other states, Canada, Mexico and a handful of countries overseas.

Commander Timothy A. Gwinn from the Pennsylvania National Guard said the building was used as an original General Motors plant that was later made into a pesticide plant in the 1990s after GM moved locations. “After the ‘earthquake,’ the building released toxins in the air that harmed civilians,” Gwinn said. “Our job is to give information on the chemicals released to first responders” who include people like firefighters and police officers.

Gwinn said his Third Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team specializes in chemical, biological and radiological detection after natural disasters and terrorist threats.

“CST is requested by the State of Emergency Office in an event of an emergency,” Gwinn said. “And the nearest available team will be on location as fast as possible.”

Lead Exercise Planner and Incident Commander Tom Poling said the scenario had six reported cases of civilians with skin burns, much like that of a sun burn, and ear, nose and throat irritations. “There were also an extreme number of casualties that the local hospitals could not keep up with the demands of our crews,” Poling said.

Major Jody A. Ankabrandt said 1,371 members of the National Guard came together to train in the scenario. “We even had international observers come in and check out our training process,” Ankabrandt said.

Ankabrandt described the Vigilant Guard as a national exercise program sponsored by the National Guard Bureau in conjunction with the North American Aerospace Defense Command and the United States Northern Command. “It provides a joint training opportunity for emergency response organizations to build relationships with local organizations against a variety of different Homeland Security threats.”

The rescue and recovery operations training ran through Friday. Ankabrandt said the training was also held at Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station and the Spaulding Fibre Plant site in Tonawanda.

Contact reporter Britney Milazzo at 439-9222, ext. 6251.