Multiple agencies meet in Eau Claire County for training on mass power outage event - WEAU

Multiple agencies meet in Eau Claire County for training on mass power outage event

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) - Weather-related disasters can strike any time of the year.

For that reason, multiple agencies got together in Eau Claire County to prepare for a power outage Wednesday.

The scenario being played out is a massive power outage caused by an ice storm.

“I’ve joked with my boss that the last two December 15ths have made me want to take December 15th off moving forward,” said Tyler Esh, the manager for Eau Claire County Emergency Management.

Even though the training inspired the training, they hope to apply this coordination of agencies for any weather event that cuts off the lights.

“And I would say that based on the lively conversation that’s already occurred, we’ve been doing a lot of thinking and a lot of learning,” said Kathryn Schauf, the Eau Claire County Administrator.

Julie Thoney with Xcel Energy said the longest outages have carried on for at least 24 hours, and have led to leaving people in the dark for up to 36 hours.

“We certainly have worked hard with the county and emergency services to ensure the safety of local residents,” said Thoney.

The medical centers are also a concern for the North West Wisconsin Healthcare Emergency Readiness Coalition.

“Burnout, having a lack of resources in terms of personnel would definitely be a concern. The other piece that we are often concerned about are people within the community that have electricity dependent medical devices,” said Aimee Wollman Nesseth, a program coordinator with the NWWHCRC.

The officials involved in the training understand each minute counts. They work hard to find ways of calm and controlled communication.

“You can go to the trainings, but actually living it and working it and having that communication makes all of the difference,” said Schauf.

Esh said another two training exercises are planned for next year.

One will be on mass casualty event training for March 2024, and the second is set for May that will focus on chemical spills.

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