County of Pitt issued the following announcement on Mar. 3.
For people who hear sirens and see smoke on the airport this Saturday afternoon, it is only a drill. The Pitt-Greenville Airport will be conducting its FAA-mandated full-scale emergency exercise Saturday, March 5, 2022 from approximately Noon to 2:00 p.m. There is a rain date set for March 12, 2022.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires airports that serve scheduled airlines to conduct a full-scale mass-casualty exercise involving an aircraft accident every three years. PGV has been preparing with the Greenville Fire Department, Greenville Police Department, Pitt County Public Information Office, Pitt County Emergency Management, Pitt County Sheriff’s Office, and other Fire Departments and Emergency Medical Services in the area. ECU will provide a bus that will simulate an aircraft fuselage.
Emergency responders will treat people acting as victims so the public should not be alarmed by ambulance activity on scene. The drill will be conducted when no airline activity is scheduled.
“The airport has prepared a comprehensive plan in concert with its mutual aid agencies should an aircraft accident take place. The required exercise provides the airport and area responders to put the plan into action and make needed changes or update information,” says Kim W. (Bill) Hopper, A.A.E., PGV Executive Director. “This is a plan that we don’t ever intend putting into play but want to make sure we are well prepared should we have to do so. I am very thankful for the participation by the area’s emergency services,” continues Hopper.
“Pitt County Government is pleased to see the coordination between Pitt-Greenville Airport and our community agency partners in preparation for an aircraft related incident,” says Janis Gallagher, County Manager. Regarding the drill, Gallagher continues, “We recognize the importance of safety planning and executing these training exercises to strengthen the emergency response and provide excellent service to Pitt County residents and visitors of the PGV airport.”
MEDIA ALERT: The media contact for this event is Dawn Jones, Director, Pitt County Public Information. All media are invited to attend this training. Airport and response staff will be available as early as 11:00 a.m. for on-location live shots, and 11:30 a.m. for recorded interviews. Members of the media interested in attending the exercise should park in front of the General Aviation Building (page 2), no later than 11:45 a.m. Personnel will be onsite to provide escort to the staging area.
Original source can be found here.
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