By Joseph DeBell
The Frederick News-Post
FREDERICK COUNTY, Md. — As paramedics worked to save then 16-year-old Chase Lancaster after he was shot at a party in Urbana in August 2024, Chase asked Frederick County paramedic Scott Tenney for one simple thing.
“He asked me to hold his hand because he was scared,” Tenney said in an interview.
Tenney did.
Nearly two years later, Tenney and four other Frederick County emergency responders were honored by the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore for their role in saving Chase’s life after the teen suffered catastrophic injuries during the shooting at an Urbana apartment clubhouse.
From Frederick County, Tenney, paramedic Lt. Cameron Pressman, firefighter/EMTs Charles Tippett and Christopher Fertitta, and Emergency Communications Specialist Travis Unger were recognized during the Shock Trauma Center’s annual “One Maryland One Shock Trauma” ceremony in Baltimore, which honored 51 trauma professionals and first responders involved in Chase’s care.
The Urbana shooting
The responders and others were honored for their actions following the Aug. 9, 2024, shooting at the Urban Green Apartments clubhouse in Urbana, where gunfire erupted during a party attended by roughly 150 high school students.
Chase, then 16 and a student in Montgomery County, was struck by a bullet that tore through multiple organs, causing catastrophic internal injuries. He was flown to Shock Trauma in Baltimore and ultimately underwent dozens of surgeries during a months-long recovery. Authorities have not publicly announced any arrests in the shooting.
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, Chase — now 18 years old — lost 70 liters of blood, underwent 20 surgeries and suffered multiple organ failures after being shot.
The bullet pierced his right side and lower chest, damaging his liver, stomach, kidney, diaphragm and heart.
“Every one of his organs failed. His kidneys failed, his lungs failed, his heart failed, his liver failed,” Dr. Thomas M. Scalea, the physician in chief at Shock Trauma, recalled in a press release. “If Chase was not the most badly injured patient we saw that year, he was very close. He was really on the brink of not surviving.”
‘Game on’
Tippett said crews were winding down for the night at the Urbana fire station when the call came in.
“Everybody was kind of winding down for the night,” Tippett said. “Then we got the pre-alert come on, station tones, and from that point on, it was game on.”
Tippett said crews arrived within minutes and initially staged away from the apartment clubhouse until law enforcement confirmed the scene was safe. He said Chase was found in the basement level of the clubhouse suffering from a gunshot wound near his right side.
“I knew it was a serious call,” Tippett said. “It was a call that our actions determined whether or not this kid ever made it home.”
Tippett said Chase was alert and could speak while emergency responders worked to stabilize him.
“The main thing that he was concerned with was making sure his shoes stayed with him,” Tippett said. “I think he was wearing like a pair of Jordans.”
Critical moments
Tenney said Chase appeared critically injured from the moment responders saw him.
“He was very diaphoretic, which means sweaty, just kind of lethargic,” Tenney said. “We couldn’t get a good pulse on him, which often indicates someone’s blood pressure is lower than 70. So we knew that his blood pressure was critically low.”
Responders quickly inserted IV lines, administered medications intended to slow internal bleeding and prepared for the possibility Chase’s condition could rapidly deteriorate, Tenney said.
“The first moments of any emergency call are extremely critical,” Tenney said. “Within the first minute or two, we’re expected to quickly assess the patient, determine the extent of the injuries or illness, and develop a treatment plan.”
The Maryland State Police helicopter normally assigned to Frederick County was already responding to another shooting elsewhere in the county, forcing responders to wait for a helicopter to arrive from outside the area.
Pressman, who was the EMS supervisor that night, said crews had to carefully weigh transport options while Chase’s condition worsened.
“We knew that he needed blood,” Pressman said. “We knew that he was in critical condition.”
At the time, Frederick County had not yet implemented its own whole blood program for EMS crews, meaning responders relied on Maryland State Police aviation personnel to begin the transfusion once the helicopter arrived.
Tippett said the blood transfusion became a critical turning point.
“He was going downhill fast, and we all knew it,” Tippett said. “That blood definitely kept him alive.”
Tenney credited the coordinated response between emergency dispatchers, firefighters, paramedics, law enforcement officers, Maryland State Police aviation crews and Shock Trauma staff for Chase’s survival.
“Everyone from law enforcement, DFRS, MSP aviation and Shock Trauma staff all made Chase’s survival a reality,” Tenney said. “His care was prompt on all levels and flowed together seamlessly as designed.”
Pressman said the call demonstrated how an emergency response system is supposed to function under pressure.
“That teamwork approach can absolutely have a lasting impact,” Pressman said, “and Chase is the prime example of the life that we can save when everyone works together.”
Doctors at Shock Trauma said Chase spent two months at the Baltimore trauma center before transferring to Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital for rehabilitation. He went home in December 2024.
According to the hospital, Chase has largely recovered from his injuries and returned to many of the activities he enjoyed before the shooting, including weightlifting and fishing.
Tippett said meeting Chase again at the awards ceremony was one of the most meaningful moments of the experience.
“He’s a walking miracle,” Tippett said. “He’s a good kid.”
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