Mahwah FD Simulates School Bus, Tractor Trailer Accident Response

For the Mahwah Fire Department and other members of the Northwest Bergen Mutual Aid Association, practice responding to serious accident scenes makes perfect. So, earlier this month, the group staged accidents at Campgaw Mountain for a multi-town response drill.

“The drill was held to give all agencies the opportunity to train and work together on a simulated accident scene of nightmarish proportions,” the FD said in a release.

Firefighters from Mahwah, Ramsey and Upper Saddle River, Mahwah and Ramsey’s Rescue Units and volunteer ambulance members from Mahwah EMS and Ramsey EMS all participated in the Nov. 9 drill.

Members of the Mahwah FD described the drill as follows:

It was set up to include multiple vehicles with numerous entrapments involving a school bus, two tanker trucks and six cars. These departments have responded to many accidents on routes 287 and 17, but a scenario of this magnitude would require a well-choreographed response in order to provide the best chance of survival for the passengers while keeping the safety of the first responders a priority based on the utilization of their skills and training. At the inception of the drill, all units responding executed a “rolling response” which means that they were called to the scene exactly the same way that they would during a real call.

Each unit was commanded to their own area of the accident scene based on the particulars and requirements of the incident. Engines from Mahwah and Ramsey provided foam blankets to allow victims to be extricated from the vehicle that was crushed by a fuel tanker.

MFD Tanker 425 (Co. #4) provided water for the engines to maintain supply and pressure on the hose lines. Once a layer of foam was down, Mahwah, USR and Ramsey’s rescue teams went to work stabilizing the overturned and crushed vehicles, then cutting out the passengers with various hydraulic and hand-held tools.

The school bus was filled with “artificial smoke” enhancing the realism of the scene for the rescue teams when evacuating the victims. Junior firefighters, “probies” and local Scouts were kind enough to play the role of the victims, although none were actually in the cars during cutting for safety reasons. Once the cutting was complete, the victims took their places in the vehicles and Mahwah and Ramsey EMS crews went to work by securing, removing and attending to the injured passengers based on their “faux” injuries (given out w/ cue cards prior to the start of the drill), quickly shuttling them to awaiting ambulances for transport to a local hospital.

'Drill masters’ from the NWBMA met in Mahwah after the drill to evaluate and critique it. Officials said the overall evaluation was “positive” and it was, “evident that every member utilized their training and knowledge in a proactive manner.”

Fire officials said the drill is helpful preparation.

“The drill gave each department a chance to see what it would be like to work in an environment you don't see everyday,” Mahwah Fire Chief Ed Garza said in the release.

“For some, it was an eye-opening experience that hopefully made them think about what they would do if it actually happened in their town or a neighboring community.”

Members say the Northwest Bergen Mutual Aid Association is comprised of fourteen fire and three rescue groups committed to provide equipment and manpower to any one member of the Association if the resources available in that town cannot meet the needs of a particular emergency.

Get more info here: http://www.nwbma.4t.com/.