The Emergency Management team at Pitt is dedicated to mitigating incidents on campus through a comprehensive exercise program. Following an extensive threat assessment, the team develops and conducts both tabletop and functional exercises to prepare for potential emergency situations impacting the campus and its students. Each year, the team organizes at least twelve exercises, involving senior leaders, staff, faculty, and external agencies. The goal is to “Get everyone on the same sheet of music.”
Exercise / Drills
The following can be facilitated with your college, department, or unit.
Drills
This is a coordinated and supervised exercise used to test a single specific operation or function. It involves deployment of equipment and personnel.
Tabletop Exercise
This is a facilitated group analysis of an emergency situation in an informal stress-free environment. It is designed for examination of operational plans, problem identification, and in-depth problem solving.
Functional Exercise
This is a fully simulated interactive exercise that tests the capability of an organization to respond to a simulated event. It takes place in the Emergency Operations Center and focuses on coordination of multiple functions or organizations. This exercise strives for realism and is short of actually deploying equipment and personnel.
Full-Scale Exercise
This is a simulated emergency event, as close to reality as possible. It involves all emergency response functions and requires full deployment of equipment and personnel. (To note, planning efforts for this type of an exercise would take approximately 12 months, from the start to final execution.)