Washington Volcano Program Benefits from Hawaii Volcano Crisis
When it comes to emergency preparedness, lessons learned are a powerful tool. One recent example of this relates to the learnings from the ongoing Hawaii volcano crisis, which have been used to bolster other emergency programs – including Washington State’s volcano program.
As you might imagine, Washington State is known for its various volcanic threats, so when the state’s volcano program coordinator traveled to Hawaii to observe the response to the Kilauea eruption, he focused on taking it all in.
Enhancing Washington State’s Volcano Program
According to this article, here are a few examples of the learnings garnered from the Hawaii experience:
- Specific EOC processes & procedures for responding to a major volcanic eruption
- Protection protocols for residents, including evacuation protocols
- Policies for working with agencies like the U.S. Geological Survey and Dept. of Civil Defense
- Challenges and techniques for estimating & managing recovery timelines
With these learnings, stakeholders of the Washington State volcano program will be holding a tabletop exercise followed by a 5-day full scale exercise, and will also be reviewing the relevant emergency plans with an eye on improvement opportunities.
In addition, efforts will be taken to improve communication with the public to improve their preparedness, including mechanisms for homeowners to determine if they are in the path of post-eruption lava streams or mudflow. Residents can also enroll to receive customized emergency alerts from the state’s volcano program.
In the final analysis, emergency preparedness is all about measuring, learning and improving, and this is just the latest example of why this mindset is so necessary and powerful.
