More than 80 volunteers played 'survivors' in an emergency planning exercise held at Caldicot Leisure Centre.

Monmouthshire County Council, Gwent Police and a range of voluntary agencies, including the British Red Cross, St John Ambulance and the RSPCA all took part in the exercise, which aimed to validate and test arrangements for establishing and running the survivor reception centre.

The volunteers were each volunteer was given a role to challenge the current procedures and allow those working in such a centre the necessary experience.

Cllr Ben Callard, MCC's cabinet member for resources, said: "Planning and testing our current procedures enable us and our partners to be prepared for any major incident. As a council, along with our partners, we aim to run these simulations every few years.

"We hope we never have to implement these plans, but by practising them, we can ensure we are ready to take action."

Real incidents are rare and it is only through simulating situations that staff from all these agencies can learn to know what to do and appreciate the problems they may face.

The council's emergency planning team ensures appropriate arrangements and procedures are in place to manage major incidents or emergencies in Monmouthshire, aiming to minimise their impact on the community.