24-05-2025
Cass County hosts hazardous materials exercise
Nearly 20 agencies gathered on Wednesday as the Cass County Local Emergency Planning Committee held its annual hazardous materials exercise at the Walton Community Fire Department.
The exercise, focusing on emergency response to damage to an anhydrous ammonia pipeline, included discussion to ensure life safety of the public and responders, to effectively communicate protective actions to the public, and environmental response to contain impacts and mitigate lasting hazards.
LEPC exercises take weeks to months to plan. Before the exercise there are multiple meetings with key response partners, industry representatives, and subject matter experts to put together a plausible scenario that provides a substantive test for the jurisdiction, according to a press release from the Cass County Emergency Management Agency.
On the day of the exercise, evaluators from outside the jurisdiction 'grade' the response and provide feedback to drive further planning. Following the exercise, an After-Action Report/Improvement Plan document is put together that identifies strengths as well as areas for improvement. Areas for improvement are tied to target completion dates and in most cases the LEPC aims to have issues addressed before the next exercise. Occasionally, larger or more complex issues might take multiple years to address. Most items are taken care of in weeks or months.
Responders participate and provide feedback. That feedback, along with evaluator feedback, comes back to the LEPC and is utilized to improve plans and fill capacity gaps for emergency response. Resource gaps identified help drive grant requests for training, equipment and other resources.
Participating agencies for the 2025 exercise included American Red Cross of Indiana, Cass County Board of Commissioners, Cass County Emergency Management Agency, Cass County Highway Department, Cass County Sheriff's Office, Clinton Township Fire Department, Existential Media, Galveston Fire Department, Grissom Air Reserve Base – Emergency Management Office, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Indiana State Fire Marshal's Office – HAZMAT Section, Indiana State Police, Logansport Memorial Hospital, Parkview Health, Royal Center Fire Department, Sunoco LP, New Waverly Fire Department, Walton Community Fire Department, Young America Fire Department.
The Cass County Planning Department and US National Weather Service Northern Indiana provided support to prepare materials and information for the 32 responders participating in the exercise.
While the Indiana Emergency Response Commission requires LEPCs to conduct one exercise a year, Cass County typically conducts three or more. For 2025 a full-scale HAZMAT exercise is expected this summer, along with a tabletop focused on community medical preparedness this fall, according to the press release.
The LEPC, in concert with EMA, conducts hazard identification, vulnerability analysis and risk assessment activities for chemical emergencies within the county. The annual exercise is a state requirement to test local plans, identify capacity gaps and identify action items in areas of planning, equipment, training and organization.
