KISSIMMEE, Fla., April 3, 2019 – Hundreds of Kissimmee Utility Authority employees will take part in a mock disaster drill on Thursday, April 4 to test the readiness of the utility for this year’s hurricane season.
The four-hour drill will involve a wide range of activities, including both live-action training and table top exercises. Activities will include pre- and post-hurricane scenarios and other threats that will be handled with the same intensity as real-life incidents.
A team of observers will evaluate the drill to identify vulnerabilities and exposures and make recommendations for improvements. These observations will be shared with utility management in a drill debriefing.
“Disaster drills play an important role in the overall development and testing of an emergency plan,” said Jef Gray, KUA’s vice president of information technology and utility drill coordinator. “We want to identify any shortfalls in the plan now so they can be addressed prior to the start of hurricane season.”
The drill will not impact normal utility operations.
The Atlantic hurricane season begins June 1 and ends November 30. Weather forecasters are predicting the number of named storms and hurricanes in 2019 to be near- to slightly above-normal historical averages, with 12-14 storms, five to seven hurricanes and two to four major hurricanes.
Founded in 1901, KUA is Florida’s sixth largest community-owned utility powering 76,000 customers in Osceola County, Fla. For more information, visit http://kua.com.