IDF launches large-scale emergency preparedness exercise
Simultaneous with General Staff emergency preparedness exercise, Home Front Command to hold similar drill in government ministries, public institutions, schools; sirens will sound Tuesday at 11:05am, 7:05pm; IDF asks everyone to practice seeking shelter during drill.
The aim of the exercise is to prepare the different commands for a range of emergency and war scenarios and to increase the readiness and operational dialogue between the various commands.
As part of the exercise, Home Front Command will also hold a drill, sounding out rocket alert sirens on Tuesday, March 13, at 11:05am and 7:05pm.
The rocket alert sirens will also be sounded on the radio, will appear on different websites and beepers for people who are hard of hearing, on the TV and on the Home Front Command's website and mobile app. A second siren will be sounded in the event of a real emergency.
The IDF says the goal of the rocket alert sirens drill is to prepare the general public to enter protected areas both in their workplaces and their homes, and to test the functionality of the rocket alert siren system across the country.
“The exercise is another opportunity to prepare the general public for emergency situations, to test the various systems, the inter-organizational coordination and the improvement of preparedness during an emergency.”
During the week, drills will take place in various locations throughout the country, and citizens might occasionally hear explosions and see increased troop movement. Schools and kindergartens across the country will also take part in the exercise. The students will drill entering safe spaces and shelters.
When the siren sounds, IDF bases, government ministries and public institutions will commence practicing entering shelters. The IDF has asked the public to follow suit and enter shelters or safe spaces when the drill siren sounds, "in accordance with the time they allotted and Home Front Command's instructions."
Instructions for finding a safe place to hide following an alert siren can be found on Home Front Command's app and website. "If entering a safe space during the exercise entails an unreasonable disruption of daily routine, routine can be preferred," the IDF elucidated.
All essential services, including hospitals, will continue operating normally. In addition, conferences and other mass gatherings will also be held normally.
Just like every year, an emphasis will be placed on coordination and cooperation between the Home Front Command forces and the National Emergency Authority, local authorities, security and rescue forces, the education system and other public and private bodies.
"The drill was planned in advanced as part of the training plan for 2018 and is meant to maintain the fitness and readiness of the troops," the IDF Spokesman's Office said.
The drill is not part of the joint American-Israeli Juniper Cobra 2018 military exercise, which focuses on preparing the IDF to face thousands of rockets and missiles launched a day from Iran, Syria, Lebanon or the Gaza Strip.
