Oak Ridge Today

New fire station, emergency operations center being built at Y-12

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A new fire station is being built at the Y-12 National Security Complex. Above, NNSA, Consolidated Nuclear Security, and Y-12 Fire Station leaders toss the first shovels of dirt for the new fire station on Tuesday, April 27, 2021. (Photo by Y-12)

A new fire station and emergency operations center are being built at the Y-12 National Security Complex.

They are pilot projects designed to streamline the efficiency and delivery of specific construction projects under $50 million, the National Nuclear Security Administration said in a press release.

The NNSA, which is part of the U.S. Department of Energy, and Y-12 managing and operating contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security had a groundbreaking ceremony for the fire station on Tuesday. A few blocks away, the emergency operations center (EOC) is already under construction.

The fire station replaces one built in 1947, and the EOC will be the home of the site’s operations center, which is currently located in a World War II-era building. “Together, these new facilities will replace two outdated buildings and enhance our emergency response capabilities,” said Gene Sievers, Y-12 site manager.

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Community Safety Forum to present plan to respond to disasters

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Bill Haslam, Tom Beehan, and Darryl Kerley

Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley, right, is pictured above with Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, center, and former Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan in March 2014. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A safety forum on Wednesday will include a discussion of possible local disasters and how fire departments in the Oak Ridge area could respond.

The fire departments that will participate are the Oak Ridge Fire Department, Oak Ridge National Laboratory Fire Department, and Y-12 National Security Complex Fire Department. They will present an overview of the State Fire Mutual Aid Plan and discuss how their fire departments participate in that plan, a press release said.

The speakers will be Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley, ORNL Fire Chief Mike Masters, and Y-12 Fire Chief Scott Vowell. They will discuss the resources they provide to the state by participating in the plan and the benefits to the Oak Ridge community, the press release said.

The Community Safety Forum is titled “Secret City Mutual Aid Plan and What it Means to Oak Ridge.” It’s scheduled from 8 to 10 a.m. Wednesday, December 6, at the American Museum of Science and Energy on South Tulane Avenue.

“Effects of natural and manmade disasters have become more frequent, far-reaching, and widespread,” Kerley said in the press release. “We have seen in our neighboring communities that, during a disaster or catastrophe, local government resources and capabilities can be overwhelmed. The State Fire Chief’s Association has been working with the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency and other organizations to develop and build a method for rapid activation and response of aid to a community in the event of a local disaster.” [Read more…]

Y-12: Quick-acting officer helps save a life

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The Y-12 Fire Department paramedics and security police officer who gave Freida Williford, front, lifesaving CPR visited her and her husband at the Harriman Care and Rehabilitation Center. From left behind her are, Justin Blackstock, Joe Perian, Keith Williford, Rick Dettmering, Brad Holt, and Loyd Williams. (Photo by Y-12)

The Y-12 Fire Department paramedics and security police officer who gave Freida Williford, front, lifesaving CPR visited her and her husband at the Harriman Care and Rehabilitation Center. From left behind her are Justin Blackstock, Joe Perian, Keith Williford, Rick Dettmering, Brad Holt, and Loyd Williams. (Photo by Y-12)

 

By Y-12 National Security Complex

Radiation control technician Freida Williford and two coworkers had been working in the Y-12 Protected Area and were headed to lunch one day in a van. She remembers feeling strange—dizzy, with a severe headache.

No, she didn’t need to go to medical, she told her coworker; it would pass. That was the last memory she had before waking up in the hospital.

As she later learned, the time during her memory gap included lifesaving steps taken by Y‑12 employees and medical professionals that gave Williford a second chance at life.

What happened in between—lifesaving steps taken by Y‑12 employees and medical professionals—gave Williford a second chance at life. [Read more…]