St Thomas emergency flood plan to be tested

Dates and details have been set to test the emergency flood plan in place for St Thomas in Exeter.

The first test, a tabletop exercise, will take place at Danes Castle Fire Station on 12 April, between 7pm and 9.30pm. It will be hosted by Devon Fire and Rescue Service and will include members of the St Thomas Community Emergency Group working alongside the Environment Agency and blue light services.

The purpose of the exercise is to test the plan in response to a flood event in St Thomas based on a real-time scenario.

In May, the second exercise will see the community group, blue light services, the Environment Agency and RNLI inshore rescue team to play out and test the flood scenario in ‘real life’ by deploying equipment and personnel to where they will be needed in the event of a flood.

Mike Walling, the St Thomas Community Emergency Group chairman, said: "It’s vital that we test our plans to check that they are viable. It’s also important that emergency service personnel and community volunteers are well briefed and tested in a real life situation."

Dave Hubbard, from the St Thomas Community Emergency Group, said: "We are delighted to put our plans to the test with the help of the Environment Agency and rescue services. The learning from both exercises will feed into preparation for a real event."

The group recently called for new members to come forward and join.

To join the group, email dc.flood@environment-agency.gov.uk quoting St Thomas Community Emergency Group, or call and ask for Devon and Cornwall Flood Resilience Team on 03708 506 506.