BOONE COUNTY — Picture a bus crash with mass casualties and a fire. First responders trained on Wednesday to learn how to navigate that chaos while still providing lifesaving care to victims.
Boone County first responders were training for an accident they hope never happens. Incidents causing a large number of injuries or deaths don't happen every day, yet first responders need to be prepared.
"It's something that will require police, fire, EMS from multiple cities, towns counties to work together for the preservation of life,” John Jurkash, the Administration Captain for Whitestown Police, said.
Students from schools in Boone and Montgomery counties volunteered to act as victims. Many of them hope to one day become first responders. One student who took part in the training said the exercise made her even more eager to pursue that career.
"Just wanting to be a part of the fire and EMS world, I felt like it was a great opportunity just to get to experience what they would go through and get to watch how they function, how they talk to people,” Molly Pierce, a Senior at Crawfordsville High School, said.
One major difference in responding to these types of situations is social media. First responders have to keep it in mind and train for it, too.
"Just the overall chaos it's going to cause with cell phones, social media,” Jurkash said. “It's getting to parents almost before first responders can get on the scene. And that's something we train for is scene integrity and security. "
Another complication the first responders were tasked with was making sure the bus was secure and getting the victims out of the car. As for aspiring first responders, the scenario gave them an even bigger appreciation for the profession.
"Firefighters, paramedics and EMS also deserve a lot of praise because they are the first there, first to be on scene, first to assist people,” Pierce said.
Boone County first responders are holding this exercise three days this week, so each shift for each agency is able to practice. During the exercise, they learn each other's protocols and develop a strategic plan to handle unpredictable situations — all with the goal of saving as many lives as possible.
