Without informing other responders, an unknown agency
coordinated a hazardous materials drill in which a portion of San
Juan Hollister Road was closed off near the entrance to the
city.
Without informing other responders, the San Benito County Integrated Waste Management Department coordinated a hazardous materials drill in which a portion of San Juan Hollister Road was closed off near the wastewater plant.
The Integrated Waste Management Department was responsible for coordinating the drill on the road entering Hollister that drew responders from Calfire, the Hollister Fire Department and the county sheriff’s office, Hollister City Manager Clint Quilter said.
Dispatchers announced a hazardous materials emergency shortly after 1 p.m. Minutes later, dispatchers reported there was a man down near propane tanks at the boundary of the Hollister wastewater treatment plant property.
Dispatchers initially reported that the city manager called in a report of an issue with propane tanks around the area. He called multiple times, dispatchers said at the time.
At the scene, firefighters pulled a man into the middle of the road and proceeded to spray him with a fire hose. After stripping the man of his clothes, it appeared as though he slowly became conscious, and responders wheeled him off into an ambulance.
After sending the man to the ambulance, responding firefighters were sprayed down with water. It was about an hour after the first report when authorities acknowledged it was just a drill.
Hollister Fire Chief Fred Cheshire noted that he received a call around 10 a.m. that there would be a drill but that he wasn’t notified about the time or place. He didn’t know the San Juan Hollister Road response was a drill until he entered the ambulance afterward and talked with the involved actor.
Calfire Division Chief Phil Matteson said he was not informed about the drill.
Quilter received a call from the county around 1 p.m. to give a message to the chief about the propane tanks, he said.
“Honestly, the city should have had no involvement in this,” he said, regarding him calling in the incident.
Integrated Waste Management Department Director Mandy Rose did not immediately return a phone call. Shortly after the drill, a receptionist said she was in a meeting.
The Hollister Police Department at 1:59 p.m. sent a press release announcing a hazardous materials emergency at the location. Ten minutes later, the police department canceled its alert.
