ESU Students Learn from First Responders

Far right, Mark Hacherl (right), incident commander for the Pennsylvania Incident Management Team (PA-IMT), talks to East Stroudsburg University students about how his team supports emergency shelter operations such as the one at Koehler Fieldhouse. With him are Lt. David Reese, the public information officer for PA-IMT and Gail Toscano, the American Red Cross preparedness and resiliency manager in northeast Pennsylvania.

By Margie Peterson

East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania (ESU) students got a crash course in crisis management Thursday when two classes met with first responders working at the temporary shelter at ESU’s Koehler Fieldhouse, which is housing people fleeing the effects of Hurricane Sandy.

The state’s 11-person Incident Management Team talked to students studying public health and social work about the intense planning and logistics that go into dealing with a disaster. The team – which includes first responders from such agencies as the state Departments of Health, Agriculture and Corrections as well as State Police – is supporting the Department of Public Welfare and the Red Cross in shelter operations.

“This team, and all of the volunteers on site are shining examples for our students in how to respond in emergency situations,” said Marcia G. Welsh, president of ESU.  “We are very fortunate to have these professionals on our campus, and for them to be so willing and open to sharing their years of experience and knowledge with our students, faculty and staff.  I think we will all walk away from the Hurricane Sandy crisis with a much better appreciation of what these first responders know, and do, to keep us safe.”

The temporary shelter at ESU was set up to assist people from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.  The widespread power outages drove senior citizens, families and others to find warmth, light and food at the Koehler Fieldhouse, which is lined with cots as well as tables and chairs where American Red Cross volunteers serve food and comfort.

“This week’s event brought people together in a unique way, and provided a tremendous opportunity to assist those in their time of need,” said Secretary of the Department of Public Welfare Gary D. Alexander. “Throughout the experience each organization involved worked tirelessly to ensure Pennsylvania citizens remained safe and I would like to thank East Stroudsburg University and their student volunteers for lending a hand when our neighbors needed us most,” said Alexander.
Speaking at the fieldhouse, Mark Hacherl, the Pennsylvania Incident Management Team (PA-IMT) incident commander, explained to students how important it is to bring in supplies from outside the crisis area because odds are you won’t find common necessities available at the scene.

“When you first go somewhere, local resources are overwhelmed,” Hacherl said.

When they set up a shelter in the aftermath of a disaster, first responders must anticipate what else can go wrong and how they’ll fix it. “These people are coming here because they don’t have power,” said Greg Bernard, operations section chief for PA-IMT.  “What happens if we lose power?”

The PA-IMT needs to be ready to deploy on short notice and be prepared for less than cushy conditions. “We all come with sleeping bags and pillows in case we don’t have a hotel room,” said Jared Grissinger, a logistics section chief with the PA-IMT.
ESU professors whose classes took part in the training said it was important for students to hear from these outside experts.

Dr. Alberto Cardelle, professor of health studies, sought to give his students a sense of the scope of a large, multi-level operation. “Emergency management is a key function of public health,” Cardelle said. “I think the scale of it is hard to grasp sometimes.”

Dr. John Kraybill-Greggo, associate professor of sociology, brought his “Foundations of Social Work Practice” class to see how agencies cooperate. “It’s beneficial for students to learn how systems work together to deal with a critical incident in the community,” Kraybill-Greggo said.

Students, such as sophomore Aalih Hussein of East Stroudsburg, who is majoring in social work and sociology with a minor in women’s studies, were impressed with the amount of planning and coordination that goes into responding to a disaster.

“It was magnificent to know the massive organization you have to have at every level,” Hussein said.  “They bring a level of humanity and compassion but also a level of professionalism.”

Shaquil Roberts, an ESU freshman from Philadelphia who is majoring in social work and psychology, said he was surprised at how many levels of government are involved in the response. “It was definitely an eye-opener,” he said.

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