Debunked: "Drill" Protocols Followed at Sandy Hook

Keith Johnson

New Member
According to Professor James Fetzer's "Top Ten Reasons: Sandy Hook Was an Elaborate Hoax," the protocols followed on December 14, 2012 were more indicative of a "drill" than a real mass casualty incident (MCI).

As proof, he cites "'Operation Closed Campus,' developed in Iowa following guidance set forth by the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) of the US Department of Homeland Security.

"According to protocol, everyone at the drill must check in, identification badges are issued to personnel and observers, and drinking water and restrooms are available. Personnel include the director, staff, controllers, evaluators, actors, media personnel and “players” (agency employees) both in uniforms and civilian clothes. This protocol appears to have been followed at Sandy Hook, where many participants wore ID/identification badges on lanyards, a huge check-in sign is visible and even Porta Potties are at the ready."
[emphasis: mine]

First of all, common sense dictates that an event that attracts hundreds of people (members of the press, parents and other relatives, law enforcement personnel, etc.) would require a great deal of accountability. You don't want people wandering about a sensitive crime scene without knowing how they are and why they're there.

A "huge check-in sign" makes absolute sense. Once they did check in, they were assigned "ID/identification badges on lanyards." Professor Fetzer finds this unusual for a MCI. However, he failed to do his homework. If he had, he would've learned that tech firm Salamander Technologies specializes in providing accountability tags for MCI's and were used at Sandy Hook:

"The Sandy Hook, Newtown and Cheshire Fire Departments utilized Salamander Intelligent Accountability (IA) solutions that they purchased from local Regional Technical Center (RTC), Higgins Corporation, prior to this terrible event. Nearly all on-scene were tagged and tracked using the department’s IA gear. This helped those responsible to resolve the situation and manage it more effectively and efficiently by allowing them to know who was on-scene and accounted for."

Professor Fetzer is also puzzled about the "Porta Potties" that were brought to the scene. In his opinion, these are common for drills but not MCI's. Once again, common sense dictates that hundreds of people, some who may be there for hours, need a place to relieve themselves. Facilities at the fire station would not likely be able to handle the traffic.

In a July/August 1999 article, entitled "Hugging the Spotlight," Jessica Seigel documents the use of portable toilets at the scene of the Columbine shooting:

"Satellite trucks from as far away as Dallas and Los Angeles crammed the public lot usually filled with students' cars. Dotting nearby grassy areas, open tents protected TV reporters from rain and a spring snowfall when they did their standups; crisscrossing cables tangled the ground. In a disaster such a scene is standard, as are the portable toilets and the Red Cross food truck." [emphasis: mine]

Remember, these are among Professor Fetzer's "Top Ten Reasons," which gives you an example of the weak arguments he (and others) are trying to make.
 
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Thanks Keith! I had never heard of James Fetzer or the "Sandy Hook Research Group". I would imagine the whole POINT of a drill is to mimic, prepare and tweak procedures and resources needed FOR real life events. Leaving out porta potties, IDs and food needs from drills kinda defeats the purpose of preparedness training. no?
 
Stating the obvious, if it was really a drill everyone would know it was a drill. Mass casualty drills happen, but everyone involved knows they're drills and the media reports them as such. They do not involve civilians who are unwittingly involved in the drill and perhaps injured or killed.
 
A "huge check-in sign" makes absolute sense. Once they did check in, they were assigned "ID/identification badges on lanyards." Professor Fetzer finds this unusual for a MCI. However, he failed to do his homework. If he had, he would've learned that tech firm Salamander Technologies specializes in providing accountability tags for MCI's and were used at Sandy Hook:
"The Sandy Hook, Newtown and Cheshire Fire Departments utilized Salamander Intelligent Accountability (IA) solutions that they purchased from local Regional Technical Center (RTC), Higgins Corporation, prior to this terrible event. Nearly all on-scene were tagged and tracked using the department’s IA gear. This helped those responsible to resolve the situation and manage it more effectively and efficiently by allowing them to know who was on-scene and accounted for."

This is the type of thing that was used:

http://www.higgins3.com/product/image/rapidtagworkcenter_lg_copy.jpg
Salamander Technologies' rapidTAG™ Work Center is a mobile on-scene badging system for tagging responders, volunteers, and visitors at the site of an event or incident. Packaged in a heavy-duty case, the rapidTAG™ Work Center comes equipped with: A laptop loaded with rapidTAG™ software; a black-and-white temporary ID printer; a magstripe/barcode reader (for stripping data off drivers' licences, military IDs, etc.); two towels; and tagging supplies for 440 personnel. Designed with mobility in mind, the Work Center case weighs just 64 lbs. when empty and under 100 lbs. fully loaded. Four removable legs turn this ingenious system into a Work Center; legs store in the case for easy transport. Other features: Built-in cable management means no cabling is required; all cords are kept connected and hidden. Built-in plastic tabletop provides a work/writing surface; keeps dust and dirt away from equipment. High-quality foam will not degrade.
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Note it's specifically for tagging a wide variety of people at an "event or incident".

And of course, as you note, this explains the check-in sign.
 
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