Illinois prepares for severe weather, power outages with ComEd-led statewide drill
A unique exercise known as Operation Power Play took place this week in Illinois, where ComEd organized the fifth statewide emergency drill to prepare organizations for worst-case scenarios related to severe weather and power-related troubles.
It is the only event of its kind led by an electric company in the United States. Over the course of two days, ComEd brought together 50 public and private agencies to collaborate, coordinate, and test responses to weather, security, and safety situations. State, county, municipal and private entities participated, from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) to the Argonne National Lab and MidAmerican Energy.
“Severe and destructive weather is expected to increase with climate change, and physical and cyberthreats are on the rise. Operation Power Play takes our preparation efforts further by providing our partners the opportunity to collaborate in advance of potential disasters,” Terence Donnelly, president and COO at ComEd, said. “We take pride in powering our communities, and that goes beyond keeping the lights on in northern Illinois. We are always preparing for the worst and hoping for the best, and we will continue to take that approach to threats and damage to the power grid.”
On Tuesday, April 25, agencies showed off equipment and vehicles that could be used in an emergency at a meeting at Soldier Field. The following day, participants engaged in 20 emergency response scenarios, such as substation sabotage, severe weather, flooding, and power loss, embracing a range of discussion-based sessions and operations-based, full-scale response deployments.
“In large-scale disasters or emergency events, it is critically important that the key public and private responders are well coordinated and able to communicate quickly and effectively,” Alicia Tate-Nadeau, director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and Office of Homeland Security (IEMA-OHS), said. “With so many drills happening simultaneously, and so many organizations in play, these drills are elevated beyond internal contingency planning discussions and lead to impactful learnings that can support future recovery efforts.”
On top of the aforementioned, ComEd also tested a new pilot program that would deploy generators to nursing homes if power loss strikes during severe weather. Nursing homes are considered vulnerable, critical infrastructure. For this exercise, ComEd teams partners with Mather Senior Living Communities and Bickford Senior Living to deploy generators onsite, then review and refine their hook-up procedures for future storm recovery efforts.
