U.S. Army soldiers, Navy sailors, Air Force airmen and civilian staff at Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC) and Desmond T. Doss Health Clinic (DDHC) conducted a mass casualty exercise July 9 as part of the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise.
The full-scale exercise at TAMC provided the hospital with an opportunity to test emergency operation plans, ensuring its readiness to effectively manage and respond to real-life, large-scale emergencies.
“The RIMPAC mass casualty exercise provided a spectacular opportunity for Air Force, Navy and Army medical personnel, as well as our civilian partners, to come together in a shared, joint environment to do what we do best, taking care of our warfighters,” said Col. William Bimson, TAMC director. “Beyond testing our internal battle drills and responses, the exercise was a great opportunity to test our communication plans across the island, presenting a unified, one team, one fight approach to saving lives and returning warfighters back to duty.”
The mass casualty drill is integrated into a broader Humanitarian Assistance, Disaster Relief (HADR) training event. The exercise involves participants from the United Nations, various nongovernmental organizations and academia, and supports Hawaii-based Department of Defense medical facilities in their statewide mass casualty drills and certifications. This integration enhances operability, tests communication and exercises crisis response capabilities among interagency partners.
During the exercise, patient actors with simulated injuries were strategically placed at staging areas across the islands. They were then medically evacuated (MEDEVAC) to Ford Island, where they were subsequently redistributed to almost every acute care hospital statewide. This scenario led to a significant influx of simulated casualties at TAMC and DDHC.
With the transition from routine to disaster mode, TAMC activated its emergency operations center and established casualty collection points and triage areas at both the hospital's helipad site and emergency department.
"RIMPAC highlights the scale of the operations TAMC must be ready to support,” said Master Sgt. Russell Akers, noncommissioned officer in charge of TAMC operations, during the mass casualty exercise. "Today's mass casualty exercise tested our ability to handle a massive influx of patients under pressure. Training like this exposes our limits and shows exactly why we must continue to expand our hospital's capabilities. We intentionally stress our systems to find the friction points. We work through these as a team to fix any gaps and always strive to get better, ensuring we are ready to support the joint force and our allies."
During the exercise, TAMC received numerous medical casualties by helicopter and bus, where they were re-triaged and brought through the emergency department. The primary objective of the training was to accurately track medical casualties from their arrival, through treatment and until their discharge.
The successful execution of this mass casualty exercise, integrated within the broader RIMPAC HADR training, underscores the critical importance of interagency cooperation and continuous preparedness. By testing emergency operation plans, refining communication protocols and exercising crisis response capabilities, TAMC, DDHC and their partners have significantly enhanced their ability to manage complex medical emergencies. This commitment to readiness ensures that Hawaii's medical facilities are not only prepared for the unique challenges posed by their geographic location but are also capable of providing timely and effective care when it matters most, safeguarding the health and well-being of the community.
Thirty nations, more than 30 surface ships, 5 submarines, 15 national land forces, more than 206 aircraft and 30,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC in and around the Hawaiian Islands, June 24 to July 31. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2026 is the 30th exercise in the series that began in 1971.
TAMC supports 264,000 active duty and retired military personnel, their families and veteran beneficiaries. In addition, the referral population includes 171,000 military – personnel, family members, veteran beneficiaries, residents of nine U.S. affiliated jurisdictions and forward-deployed forces in more than 40 countries throughout the Pacific.