The scenario was one typically dreamed up by Hollywood producers.
A man walks into a local medical facility with signs and symptoms of chemical agent exposure. Soon, more and more people show up with the same symptoms. The medical facility alerts the local emergency management director, and soon there is a full-blown hazardous-materials decontamination team on site.
But this wasn’t a Hollywood movie, according to Jessamine County Emergency Management Director John V. Carpenter.
Because of Jessamine County’s close proximity to the Blue Grass Army Depot in Richmond, which stores chemical warfare weapons, the county is a part of the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program.
Nicholasville Fire Chief Charles Brumfield said his department and other emergency agencies train twice a year and are rated annually on their preparedness.
“The goal is to justify the equipment we’ve received through the program,” Brumfield said. “We’ve received an estimated $1.2 million in equipment through CSEPP.”
