Xcel Energy holds natural gas emergency drill in Altoona

Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Heidi Bohl, WQOW

Altoona (WQOW) - Emergency lights were seen in an Altoona neighborhood Wednesday. 

Xcel Energy, Altoona police and fire departments, and Oakleaf Surgical Hospital held a natural gas emergency drill to practice effective responses. They dug a hole near the hospital, and used an air compressor to simulate an actual gas leak. 

Xcel Energy carries out drills like such on a regular basis, but Wednesday was the first for Oakleaf Hospital staff. Since opening the facility in Altoona, Xcel Energy said any natural gas leak is dangerous, but when it happens at a hospital it can create special safety challenges. 

"You have people in surgery, and you have people coming out of surgery, so getting 300 people out of the hospital would take quite a bit of time," Erma Radke, with Oakleaf Surgical Hospital, told News 18. "We wanted to put it on a large scale so we were prepared for the small ones as well."

Oakleaf staff ended the drill with a follow-up meeting to make as many emergency plan adjustments as needed. 

"We were able to implement a lot of things that we knew, and identify opportunities for improvements," Kevin Inman, with Xcel Energy, said. "I really thought it was a real benefit for all of our staff and our community."

Read more about this article »