Director of Campus Safety Fran Manfredo contributed a Viewpoint column to University Business in which he underscores the importance of building relationships with state emergency agencies in preparing for campus emergencies.
In “College and local first responders go far beyond tabletop emergency exercise,” Manfredo describes the preparations for Hamilton’s July 29 emergency drill. The New York State Police (NYSP), New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, Central Oneida County Volunteer Ambulance Corps (COCVAC), and the Clinton Fire Department took part in the five-hour drill on campus.
Manfredo wrote, “The exercise, created to test the preparedness of Hamilton College’s crisis management team and local and New York state emergency response agencies, took seven months to plan. By undertaking a live drill, as opposed to a tabletop exercise, participants became familiar with each other in an emergency situation, formed working relationships for the future, and tested written plans.”
