PLACENTIA, Calif. — More than 40 representatives from federal, state, county and local agencies participated in a Carbon Canyon Dam tabletop exercise July 31 at the Yorba Linda Water District in Placentia, California.
The discussion-based exercise, led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District, was designed to enhance interagency coordination and procedures during emergency operations in the event of an extreme storm that affects the dam’s downstream communities. The exercise was also meant to cover the roles and responsibilities required during a switch from normal operations to emergency operations in conjunction with USACE Reservoir Regulations.
Highlighting the effort of flood-risk management, emergency managers, emergency responders and public information officers from various agencies such as the California Office of Emergency Services, Orange County Sheriff’s Department, City of Brea, U.S. National Weather Service and USACE participated in the exercise.
“All these exercises are valuable, and this one was no exception,” said David Kingston, LA District Emergency Operations Branch chief, who was sharing a table with representatives from both the LA District and the South Pacific Division, Cal OES, and nearby city and county agencies. “Some of these people had never met each other. As a result of this exercise, we all know a lot better what we all do, and we got some great input on how to make our Emergency Action Plan for Carbon Canyon Dam a lot better with this direct input.”
Informing USACE’s external partners about its Dam Safety Program and providing updates about inundation mapping were also major objectives of the exercise.
“Regardless of the stakeholder, everybody needs to have the same information so they can protect their local communities,” said Lt. Col. Stephen Brooks, LA District deputy commander, who participated in the exercise. “That’s what it’s all about, really: establishing what the situation is, what we’re going to do about it, how we’re going to mitigate risk — and accept some risk — and follow-on actions once the emergency is completed.”
Carbon Canyon Dam, which is located near the northern edge of Orange County, was built and is owned and operated by the LA District. The dam has been operating as intended since opening in 1961. Nevertheless, the LA District regularly works with partners like the Yorba Linda Water District to host these types of exercises that often walk stakeholders through emergency scenarios caused by extreme weather events.
“This is the second tabletop exercise I’ve attended, but they’re absolutely critical because it’s not a matter of ‘if,’ but ‘when’ for these types of emergencies,” Brooks said. “So, it’s important for all our stakeholders to understand how we operate with respect to primary duties for our Emergency Operations Center, our Reservoir Operations Center, the synergy between those offices and how they delineate the information to establish a shared understanding.”