-Written by Shoji Whittier
On June 24, representatives from Ally Emergency Management, Teck and FortisBC met at the Waneta Dam to practice putting their Emergency Response Plan into effect, in a table-top exercise organized by Ally. The scenario in question: a hypothetical wildfire spreads near the dam, threatening the operation of the dam itself, as well as damaging vital infrastructure nearby.
Planning for the exercise began in mid-February, and was originally planned as a mechanical failure. However, exercise designer John Perry felt as though a different scenario would be more appropriate. According to Perry, the dam’s numerous fail-safe systems made a mechanical failure scenario unlikely, whereas a wildfire presents a more realistic and unpredictable threat.
“Unlike other [exercises] where ‘bang, a pipe has blown, and now we have gas blowing, everything is immediate,’ this was designed to simulate a slow-approaching problem with no apparent resolution,” said Perry. “It wasn’t just a one-in-a-million chance of a valve blowing, it was something that could really happen.”
The exercise itself was well-received by participants, says Perry. With fire season already underway during the exercise, the threat of a wildfire was already on most of the participants’ minds.
“[During the event] there were wildfires already starting to catch, so everyone took this exercise really seriously,” said Perry. “As each phase was discussed, there were different things that came out of it, and there was a lot of good discussion. It was a good balance between the current operations, and the planning of what could possibly be the next consequences of this scenario.”
FortisBC Damage Prevention Supervisor Jimmy Yips says Ally Emergency Management’s involvement in the exercise played a critical role in its success.
“Honestly, I think it went super well. I think [everyone] from the start was very engaged because we were able to – through Ally’s support – give them direction on how best to approach the exercise,” said Yip. “I’ve always appreciated what Ally does for us, for sure.”
