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Mt St Helens 18 May 1980 0832 . Some experiences of the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office. The Eruption. 5.2 earthquake Lateral blast from north side of Mt Largest landside in world history Over 50 people, citizens, lost their lives. Initial response was a SAR Radio IN -operability
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Mt St Helens18 May 1980 0832 Some experiences of the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office
The Eruption • 5.2 earthquake • Lateral blast from north side of Mt • Largest landside in world history • Over 50 people, citizens, lost their lives
Initial response was a SAR • Radio IN-operability • Securing the area • “It’s headed your way!” • Communications, communications, communications…
What we had • Minimal local resources • Good common sense leadership • Extraordinary emergency responders • Extraordinary citizen involvement • Willingness to work as a team
What we didn’t have • Communications, communications, communications… • Redundancy • Alternative communications • …Money
Communications • Most agencies were VHF • Two neighbors were UHF • Most did NOT have other’s frequencies • No Communications Plan • No mobile assets
Lessons learned (?) • In EVERY incident debriefing, the #1 issue brought up…….. • COMMUNICATIONS • Build a Plan (dynamic) • Train on the Plan • Work your Plan