Disaster struck the Sunshine Coast on March 14, but not really.
The Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) in league with almost 20 organizations on the Coast, staged a full-scale emergency exercise on Wednesday. Together they proceeded as if a large earthquake had pummelled the coastline.
Among the areas being tested were response times, radio communication, evacuation procedures and the establishment of an emergency operations centre (EOC).
The SCRD declared a state of emergency after "a magnitude 7.0 earthquake, 25 km deep in the Strait of Georgia southwest of Bowen Island had a severe impact on portions of the Sunshine Coast."
The Langdale ferry terminal was badly damaged and became inoperable with a road closure preventing access to Earl's Cove, effectively leaving the Coast isolated to respond to its emergent crisis.
Float planes weren't operating, a boil water advisory for all areas was in place, Teredo Square had collapsed, gas leaks were being reported and, worst of all,11 casualties had been reported by 3:30 p.m., including one death.
The exercise was developed in conjunction with Natural Resources Canada and focused on an event that could potentially occur on the Coast.
While the SCRD has done emergency planning of this sort before, the March 14 response was a large operation that took seven months to plan.
"We have a master sequence of events, so basically it's scripted and there will be inputs to the people who are participating," said emergency program co-ordinator Bill Elsner before the exercise. "They just know that it's going to be an earthquake scenario."
Funding came from an emergency preparedness grant and the federal government, Elsner said.
Other participating organizations included School District No. 46, the Town of Gibsons, District of Sechelt, Sechelt Indian Government District, Search and Rescue, Amateur Radio, St. Mary's Hospital and BC Ferries.
The EOC was set up at the SCRD's location on Field Road, a war room of sorts where officials responded to the rising crisis and co-ordinated their efforts.
"The people participating in the exercise have to be able to think on their feet and fulfill the roles they've been trained to fulfill," predicted community services manager Paul Fenwick.
Well-prepared staff blocked entry into the command centre and papered the windows when the media showed up and began taking intrusive photographs of the operation.
Curiously, the caterers had still managed to gain entry to the command centre, stocking the board room with a healthy supply of snacks.
At 3:30 p.m. the EOC held a press conference to address the eager reporters who had gathered in the front foyer.
There they instructed residents to remain calm, repeating the message that citizens should stay in their homes and avoid the roads unless absolutely necessary. Updates were being continually broadcast via local radio CKAY FM.
Officials then reported the latest - several residents had escaped the fury on the 12:20 p.m. ferry from the Coast, but the Langdale terminal had become unusable.
Road access to Earl's Cove was also blocked and float plane services shut down.
While much of the response was still in the planning stages, concerns over food and water had already developed. Chaster Bridge in Bonniebrook had been knocked out and 12 Lower Mainland police officers were on their way to help deal with the situation, arriving by helicopter.
Chlorine alarms were going off at the Chapman Creek water treatment plant, while power outages added a further complication as a shortage of fuel was also apparent.
"Exercises like this become even more important when we reflect on the disasters in New Zealand and Japan and the recent 5.7 earthquake off the coast of Vancouver Island," said SCRD board chair Garry Nohr, quoted in a media release. "Training and preparedness are critical."
