Navy to hold massive drill of its own on Puget Sound

INDIAN ISLAND, Wash. — As work is being done to prepare for a massive earthquake throughout the Puget Sound area in the Cascadia Rising drill, the Navy is preparing for one of the largest exercises yet.

The drill that begins on Sunday is separate from the Cascadia Rising drill, but the Navy is already setting up for the massive event that will be held on Puget Sound because there are so many island communities that would be stranded in the event of a major earthquake.

The Navy has set up a huge 850-person tent city for military personnel to run the operations from on Indian Island in the south end of the Sound.

The Navy will use the giant USNS Bob Hope, which is basically a floating warehouse, to shuttle supplies to stranded island residents.

The ship can hold 150, 20-foot long containers that could be filled with food and water. Smaller vessels can be loaded with supplies to make runs to various islands.

The Navy has also set up an inland petroleum distribution system that is a fueling depot that could be used to keep vehicles running.

Five-hundred members of the Navy, Army, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard are participating in the drill that will test their ability to move supplies from the water to land without using a pier, according to the News Tribune.

Meanwhile, for the ongoing Cascadia Rising earthquake drill Thursday, the National Guard is taking a KIRO 7 News photographer up in the air to show us an airborne operation.

Cox Media Group