News & Events

Palo Verde Disaster Exercise

Description:

County organizations were part of this disaster drill. HOPE participated last year and they were excited to have us back. Overall, the drill seemed to go well. One ‘actor’ did such a great job, everyone believed she was autistic and having a meltdown. Jamie and Manda were wonderful with her and it was quite a learning experience for everyone. Most workers didn’t know what to do, but the fire/police personnel were terrific. It was very informative to hear all the tools they could use to find out who she was (I.e., facial recognition, various databases, etc.). The group leader also reminded everyone the dogs were there for the responders, as well as those impacted.
Several great connections were made with other organizations: the Buckeye Police along with Crisis Response Network, who offered to partner with us on deployments and use their class A motor home for respite for handlers and dogs.

Stephanie Clark/Parker, Jamie Deppey/Manda, Sharon Martin/Abby