2-county mass casualty drill planned for Saturday in Barre
BARRE – There will be dozens of firefighters and other first responders on Hill Road in Barre on Saturday morning in a mass casualty drill.
The scenario will include a school bus laying on a truck. Firefighters will practice extrication with the bus, removing chunks of the bus to remove passengers. Firefighters and other first responders will also practice a triage setup.
Firefighters from Orleans and Genesee counties will be joined in the drill by law enforcement officers, Department of Health staff, doctors and workers from Medina Memorial Hospital and the United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia, and emergency management personnel.
First responders are expected to start the drill on Hill Road at about 8 a.m., said Al Cheverie, the county’s emergency preparedness coordinator.
The county will handle emergency communications through the backup dispatch center at the Orleans County Emergency Management Office on West Countyhouse Road. The drill will give dispatchers a chance to test the backup equipment, which has recently been upgraded, Cheverie said.
Lyons Collision in Medina is bringing a school bus to the scene. Firefighters will practice using equipment to make openings on top of the bus and on the bottom.
“We will review our mutual aid plan,” Cheverie said about the drill, which is expected to include firefighters from Albion, Barre, Carlton and East Shelby in Orleans County, as well as Elba and Oakfield in Genesee County. “We are looking for our strengths and our weaknesses.”
