Crossposted from KC Emergency News

After more than four days of action simulating a catastrophic magnitude 9.0 earthquake, the Cascadia Rising exercise has come to an end. More than 20,000 people across the Pacific Northwest took part in the drills, which put emergency response and recovery plans to the ultimate test. King County activated its Emergency Coordination Center, where hundreds of people came together to support the exercise response.

Walt Hubbard, director of King County Emergency Management, says overall he was impressed by Cascadia Rising.

“The level of commitment to the exercise from county departments, our regional partners, the community, and our volunteers was excellent,” Hubbard said. “The level of focus we had, identifying problems and collectively working to find solutions, was a real highlight.”

Now, Hubbard and his team of emergency management professionals will take the lessons learned from Cascadia Rising to further refine and improve King County’s emergency response plans, with a focus on building community resilience.

Hubbard gave a brief statement following the end of exercise activities on Friday, June 10. Video is available below.