PHOTOS: St. Francis Regional Medical Center Evacuates as Part of a Drill

A tornado has hit Shakopee and has suffered damage. Many windows have been blown out and rain is starting to come in. The phone and email systems no longer work, electricity is intermittent and staff must evacuate patients.

Such was the scenario at the hospital Thursday morning during a large-scale exercise designed to bring emergency personnel from different agencies together to practice implementing a plan they hope never needs to be put into effect.

Molly Johnson, the hospital's marketing communications specialist, said the drill is the largest of its kind in the state and that similar drills have taken place at other Allina hospitals in the metro.

"Every time we drill, we learn something new," she said. "But, this is bigger and lets us work with other emergency staff and equipment from other agencies."

Personnel from the hospital, Allina's corporate office and a consulting firm, along with area police, fire and ambulance participated.

The largest piece of equipment used in the drill was a medically equipped custom bus owned by the Metropolitan Airports Commission. It fits approximately 20 patients, both lying down and seated.

Volunteers playing the role of patients with varying conditions were moved from different floors of the hospital down the stairs and through various checkpoints before they were transported to the bus.

Volunteer Wayne Brommelsiek was designated as a heart attack patient and had to be moved down the stairs while strapped into a custom evacuation chair. Brommelsiek and volunteer Marlene Schulz are members of the Medical Reserve Corps of Carver County. Schulz played the role of a pregnant woman and said she thought the exercise was worth the effort.

"You never think it will happen," she said of a local disaster. "As a nurse, I know how important it is to have a handle on some of this."