JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii – Navy Closure Task Force – Red Hill (NCTF-RH) hosted a team of experts from several organizations to conduct a tabletop exercise focused on a fuel spill scenario at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility (RHBFSF) Feb. 22.

Experts who participated were NCTF-RH, Joint Task Force-Red Hill (JTF-RH), the Environmental Protection Agency, Hawaii Department of Health, Navy Region Hawaii, Federal Fire Department, U.S. Coast Guard, and various contractors supporting the closure efforts.

“Spill Drills are essential in our efforts to protect human health, safety and the environment. These drills help to identify potential issues, so we can devise and implement processes to help avoid or minimize the impacts of a spill,” said Melani Tescher, NCTF-RH Environmental Operations Lead. “These events also help create a cohesive team by identifying the roles and responsibilities that every stakeholder, to include the regulators, needs to understand and perform if a spill were to happen.”

The tabletop exercise is the first rehearsal for a full-scale fuel spill drill which will be held in the coming weeks in preparation for NCTF-RH to take full operational control of the RHBFSF.

“Events like these are a critical piece of the transition from the JTF to NCTF,” said Tescher. “We can pick up where they will leave off in regard to safety and security during the closure process”.

NCTF-RH is committed to working with all government agencies and community stakeholders to safely and deliberately close the RHBFSF underground storage tanks and associated pipelines, conduct long-term environmental remediation, and ensure continued access to safe drinking water in compliance with all Federal, State, and local laws, policies and regulations.

For more information about NCTF-RH, visit www.navyclosuretaskforce.navy.mil.