Katastrofedriller

Katastrofedriller is a term used in Norwegian-language discourse to describe structured exercises that simulate large-scale emergencies or catastrophes to test and improve emergency response systems. The term combines katastrofe (catastrophe) and drill, and is commonly applied in civil protection, emergency management, healthcare, and critical infrastructure contexts.

Exercises may be tabletop, functional, or full-scale, and are designed to evaluate decision-making, interagency coordination, communications, and resource management across organizations.

Typical scenarios cover natural disasters, major accidents, health emergencies, mass casualty events, and multi-hazard incidents. Participants often include municipal emergency management, police, fire, ambulance services, hospitals, public utilities, transport operators, regulators, and government agencies, as well as volunteers and media representing the public.

Planning processes establish objectives, develop scenario injects, schedule activities, ensure safety, and define an evaluation framework. After-action reviews and improvement plans identify gaps in plans, procedures, training, and equipment, and inform updates to policies and readiness programs.

Katastrofedriller are embedded in national or local preparedness programs to strengthen resilience, interoperability, and public communication during emergencies.

The concept overlaps with international emergency management practices and is related to disaster drills, emergency preparedness exercises, and business continuity testing.