FMF emergency skills
Shelley Lipke
Staff writer
Firefighters Bryce Patey and Mark Pala attend to cardiac arrest casualty Cliff Deschepper during a simulated emergency response situation.
Photo by Shelley Lipke, Lookout
Workers at Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Breton (FMF CB) shop 135 showed they're ready for an emergency when they were surprised with an exercise aimed at testing their first aid skills.
Normally after lunch the mechanics would be fixing machinery, but last Wednesday they returned from their break to discover two casualties on the shop floor. Jumping into action, they put their emergency preparedness training to work.
"All departments throughout DND should know what to do in the event of a casualty," said FMF safety and environment inspector, Claude Himbeault. "This was an opportunity for them to practice their skills and receive feedback on their performance."
As the co-ordinator for the exercise, Himbeault worked alongside three observers from a safety and environment background to assess the employees' responses.
"The most important factor in the entire exercise is the communication aspect," said Himbeault. The observers watched to ensure the workers communicated with each other, called 911 and the fire department, and ensured the situation was safe until the fire fighters arrived to take over.
This drill tested personnel training, response time, cooperation, resources and workforce and equipment capabilities," said Himbeault. "It was a success on all fronts."
He said the workers learned a lot and weren't too sure how far to push the envelope. "They didn't really know if they should pull the fire alarm for real and phone 911," he said. "One guy walked halfway to the phone, turned around and started walking back saying, 'I phoned them.' But they need to really phone them and get them on the scene as quickly as they can, and take care of the casualty until the fire brigade arrives," said Himbeault.
"It was good practice for the fire department too, because when they are called in, they are also being assessed on their care of the casualty by the emergency medical response instructor."
After about 45 minutes of caring for the casualties, the fire department had splinted one broken leg, and revived a cardiac arrest patient, and the groups departed the shop to debrief on their performance.
"The observers gave us really good feedback, and we picked up a lot of lessons and things to work on. In my opinion we don't do enough of this type of training," he said.
As part of the emergency response plan, this will change, said Himbeault. He has been given the green light on staging a couple of scenarios a year and is planning the next one in a few months.
"The only good tragedy is a well rehearsed tragedy," he said. "The other shops should be careful because we're coming soon."
