The Crisis Management Memo

When mock disasters become real

Sometimes a mock disaster can take on a life of its own.

Take September 11, 2009, when the Coast Guard in the Washington, D.C., area held a mock disaster on the Potomac. A CNN reporter picked up some of the radio traffic believing it was real. President Obama was speaking at the Pentagon for the 8th anniversary of 9/11. The story ran on CNN until they found out later that it was just a mock disaster. NBC ran it on their nightly news.

I’m sure CNN would like to have known from the start. The Coast Guard said they will review their operations procedures for disaster drills in the future.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported more recently that a pharmacy technician in New Jersey is suing her company for staging a mock holdup that included a masked gunman demanding OxyContin. She said the man burst in and told her he was holding another worker hostage. When she called for help, the phone didn't work. She later found out that it was all a drill. She is claiming assault, false imprisonment and infliction of emotional distress. Another mock disaster gone bad.

For more on that story, go to http://www.philly.com/philly/news/new_jersey/20090914_Lawsuit_in_Burlco_over_mock_holdup.html


The point is that while mock disasters or disaster drills can be extremely valuable in preparing organizations to handle real disasters, those participating need to know exactly what they are from the beginning. They are called "mock" disasters for a reason.

Every phone call, every walkie-talkie call needs to begin and/or end with the words, "This is an exercise." Signs stating that the event being seen by passers by is a mock disaster need to be placed in public areas.

Everyone participating in the drill needs to know it is just a drill, not the real thing.

Believe me, I learned the hard way.

Years ago, our firm did a mock disaster for a hospital in which the CEO asked that only a handful of players would know that it was a drill. We went along with his request, figuring that everyone would know within minutes that it was an exercise. It didn't turn out that way. Even when we told them it was an exercise, some people didn't believe us.

Today, we won't always tell people what the exercise is about or exactly when it will take place, but they certainly know from the beginning that it is an exercise and not the real thing.

I heard about another hospital a few years ago that staged a mock disaster involving a gunman in the emergency room. They didn't tell people and the "mock" gunman almost got shot himself.

So if you want to stage a mock disaster, go ahead. Make it as realistic as you can. You don't have to spill the beans on what scenario you'll use or when or exactly where it might take place. But please, please make sure everyone participating and even those who may be watching from the outside know from the very beginning that it is a mock disaster.

There's no reason why a mock disaster needs to become a real one.

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