The three-day Huron Endeavour exercise at Bruce Power, conducted Oct. 4-6, successfully demonstrated Bruce Power and its stakeholders’ ability to respond to an emergency.
The massive exercise was the fourth in the Huron series of large-scale examinations of Bruce Power’s emergency preparedness and response strategy. Bruce Power conducts one of these drills every three years. In 2012, Huron Challenge was the first such exercise, followed by Huron Resolve in 2016, and then Huron Resilience in 2019.
The Bruce Power Emergency Management department began development and coordination of Huron Endeavour more than a year ago. This year’s collaboration included Emergency Management Ontario, municipalities, and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), with nearly 40 agencies, and almost 1,400 participants involved.
“Safety starts with having a plan and being prepared, and routine exercises such as Huron Endeavour support our government’s comprehensive approach to emergency preparedness,” said Prabmeet Sarkaria, President of the Treasury Board of Ontario, whose mandate includes emergency management for the province. “We are grateful to our partners for this opportunity to strengthen our response capabilities so that Ontario remains resilient, safe and secure.”
Huron Endeavour proved to be our most dynamic scenario yet, not only challenging our Emergency Response Organization but the emergency response personnel across the province from our local communities, to London, Toronto, and Ottawa.
The three days were initiated by a simulated cargo plane crash into the Bruce B station. The plane crash presented our fire and security responders with many challenges. The simulated series of events involved highly unlikely scenarios such as mass casualties and radiological releases that prompted response from surrounding municipalities and from the province and regulators.
Large scale exercises like these are a compilation of multiple drills integrated into a single timeline with many moving parts. Huron Endeavour was no different with simulated casualties being sent to both Saugeen Shores and Kincardine hospitals, the activation of the municipal reception evacuation centre, the activation of the Emergency Management Centre, the provincial emergency operations centre and many more, all operating simultaneously.
“This has been a tremendous test of our emergency arrangements here at Bruce Power and with local municipalities, provincially, and also at a federal level,” said Steve Thompson, Department Manager of Emergency Management, and exercise director of Huron Endeavour. “The interoperability, communication and co-operation demonstrated in Huron Endeavour was tremendous and sets a fantastic foundation going forward.”
Bruce Power takes an all-hazards approach to safety and it’s important that we consider all the risks and do our absolute best to prepare for the worst. Our social responsibility is not only to our employees, but to the families and communities closest to us.
The strengths and opportunities that were captured during Huron Endeavour will continue to drive performance improvement and create a positive path forward to strengthen our already robust Emergency Management program.
To view a video highlighting Huron Endeavour, click here.
About Bruce Power
Bruce Power is an electricity company based in Bruce County, Ontario. We are powered by our people. Our 4,200 employees are the foundation of our accomplishments and are proud of the role they play in safely delivering clean, reliable nuclear power to families and businesses across the province and life-saving medical isotopes around the world. Bruce Power has worked hard to build strong roots in Ontario and is committed to protecting the environment and supporting the communities in which we live. Formed in 2001, Bruce Power is a Canadian-owned partnership of TC Energy, OMERS, the Power Workers’ Union and The Society of United Professionals. Learn more at www.brucepower.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
