HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2007-07-18, Page 24Page 24 The Huron Expositor • July 18, 2007
News
Simulation prepares workers for a real disaster
Schpol bus, car and gas truck collision tests Huron East's emergency plan
From Page 8
student and made the observers
step back and out of the way of dan-
ger.
Rotteau said she also liked how
closely firefighters and paramedics
worked together.
"It was very well coordinated and
very effective," she said.
"We'll never do it perfectly
though. That's why we keep practis-
ing," she said.
Rotteau also congratulated the
MedQuest campers who played the
victims.
"You played your parts well and
you didn't overact," she said.
Laura Overholt, organizer of the
MedQuest camp, said one observa-
tion was how the labouring woman,
played by a birthing simulator man-
nequin, was left to give birth by her-
self with no assessment of her con-
dition.
As well, she said the student vic-
tims observed everyone trying to do
their jobs but noticed a different
level of commitment to that.
"They said they saw people skip-
ping out of their roles and realizing
it was just an exercise," she said.
Huron OPP Sgt. Perry Teichert
said that because police officers
have the priority of protecting the
scene and any criminal evidence, it
could appear police are working at
cross purposes to those there to help
the victims.
"We deal with this kind of situa-
tion everyday and we can become
too hardened from it. I couldn't
count how many fatalities I've been
to," he said.
Seaforth fire department's deputy
chief Jim Sills agreed that the
emergency personnel didn't take the
live hydro wires seriously enough.
"We might have had more
patients, firefighters and EMS lost
because of the hydro lines. Other
than that, I think we did a pretty
good job," he said.
Mario Oliveira, of the Huron
County EMS, said he thought the
treatment of the patients was excel-
lent but had troubles communicat-
ing with his radios.
He said the exercise was valuable.
"You're not sure what you're going
to be dealing with at an emergency
but you let your training take over.
As the minutes tick by, you get a
better idea and things work out and
people get taken where they need to
go for treatment," he said.
"Even though it's a simulation, it
could be real tomorrow," said
Oliveira.
Gary Wood, Huron County's emer-
gency management coordinator
agreed that the disaster was very
realistic and said it was a great
experience for high school students
considering medical careers.
Marty Bedard,
Huron East's fire
chief and emer-
gency manage-
ment coordina-
tor, said the
municipality is
required to test
its emergency
plan once a year.
The disaster
also put munici-
pal staff through
its paces since it
involved a gas
spill into the
storm drains and
an emergency
command centre
set up at town
hall.
"We even
called the
Ministry of
Environment
and they relayed
recommenda-
tions about what
should be done in
that situation,"
he said.
Huron OPP
went through the exer-
cise of knocking on doors
nearby, as in a real disas-
ter involving a gas spill,
the neighbourhood -
including the nearby
school and daycare centre
- would have to be evacu-
ated because of the
threat of an explosion.
The municipality, with
the help of Red Cross vol-
unteers, went through
the exercise of setting up
a shelter at the Seaforth
Legion and blockading
the neighbourhood.
"The actual event could
have gone on for over a
day, not just the two
hours it took for the
mock disaster," he said.
Susan Hundertmark photos
Above, Alex Cardno, of Seaforth, gets emergency attention
while below, a paramedic checks out a labouring woman
(played by a birthing simulation mannequin) as Paige Doherty,
of Stratford, remains trapped in her car. At left, Stephanie
Collings , of Stratford, receives a comforting hand from a
Huron OPP officer while below left Michaela MacGinty, of
Goderich and Kristina Rolph, of Mitchell talk to a paramedic
during a mock disaster in Seaforth last Thursday.