VCAD steps up training efforts

Vernon County Ambulance District personnel conduct a large-scale training drill Wednesday night on the south side of Walton Lake, practicing the rescue of people injured in a nearby fictitious pipe bomb explosion. Crews had brought five VCAD ambulances, a four-wheel-drive vehicle and their equipment-laden mobile rescue trailer. James R. Campbell/Herald-Tribune.

The Vernon County Ambulance District is conducting a series of training exercises aimed at making the staff, first responders and a cadre of community volunteers more prepared for all sorts of emergencies.

Wednesday, at about 7 p.m., the scenario went into play. Three teens had been playing with homemade fireworks; one, who was from out of town, had brought along a pipe bomb that was detonated, injuring two of the teens and an innocent bystander. One of the teens called 911 -- he didn't know exactly where he was but had said he was at a park by the pool.

And so, 22 people responded to the drill at Walton Park to address the situation.

Vernon County Ambulance District Director James McKenzie said he was pleased with the number of people participating in the drill, saying it spoke to their dedication to helping the community when needed.

Through the exercise, he said, responders and volunteers will be more organized; and he's confident the drills will enable them to respond and carry out duties more quickly and efficiently.

Some things that could be done better were identified, and when on Thursday McKenzie said, "We're rearranging some of the stuff in the trailer as we speak."

Ambulance district personnel will share the responsibility of coming up with scenarios that could feasibly happen in Vernon County for the drills, which the district plans to conduct about every 30 days, with the next drill to occur around the end of August.

The district and those who participate in the drills can learn much from practicing their skills -- in this case, triage, search and rescue, how to let community members who aren't medically trained to help and more. Even feedback from the volunteers who serve as "victims" offers insight that's important to handling emergencies, McKenzie said.

Although there's little to no budget for such exercises, McKenzie says the training has to be done.

"It's just too important not to do it. That's our job -- to make sure we're as prepared as we can be" to respond quickly with whatever's needed when an emergency takes place, he said.

Although some difficulties were encountered during Wednesday's exercise, McKenzie said, "After a half dozen of these, it'll be like clockwork."