By Vanessa Grieve
Idaho State Journal
POCATELLO — At the bottom of a small hill, 20 “victims” cried for help from within an overturned bus. The bus, resting on its passenger side, had a dent in its top and bodies could be seen inside.
Area emergency responders used the staged event Saturday at Sister Cities Park for a disaster drill, involving Pocatello Police and Fire departments, Bannock County Search and Rescue, Bannock County EMS and Portneuf Medical Center.
Fire Chief Mike Irwin said these drills take place at least once every two years.
“We learn at everyone of these we do and certainly we get better each time we do one of these,” Irwin said. “It also allows us to work together with all the different entities and hopefully , makes us closer together and able to work together much better than what we can if we didn’t provide these opportunities.”
The drill included a tipped over bus with 20 victim volunteers , who were adorned with fake blood and played certain roles.
Initial responders looked for a way to reach the people inside the bus, through the top hatch and by removing half of the windshield. Each person who was pulled from the wreckage was given a triage tag to note each victim’s condition and to ensure the person received adequate treatment while being passed from various emergency personnel.
One woman cried out incessantly that her skin was burning. In an effort to mirror a real life scenario, the woman was “decontaminated” by a fire hose. Another person with a head injury wandered off and others lay strapped to stretchers while awaiting being carried to the top of the hill for transport to PMC.
Irwin said the simulation is an amplified situation that used extraordinary emergency services with multiple groups called in to respond.
“We are pretty much taxed on a daily basis and this takes it to the next level,” Irwin said.
Pocatello Jerry and Deeann Dixon welcomed the public’s invitation to watch the training and brought their two children, 4-year-old Alec and 6-month-old Breanna.
Jerry said Alec wants to be a fireman when he grows up and it is common for the family to walk to a nearby fire station and watch the firemen practice.
“I think it’s neat because they are going over there and the fire trucks are parked there,” Alec said. “They are taking the people out from inside the bus. It’s cool, really cool.”
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Copyright 2012 Idaho State Journal