Hay prepares for emergency

By Robert Marmont.

All of Hay’s Emergency Services, Ag Flite, Scouts and Hay Shire Council took part in a simulated airport exercise on Saturday morning at Hay Aerodrome.

The alert calls went out at 9.50 am with all those involved being notified that an agriculture spray plane and a small passenger aircraft had collided at the Aerodrome.

The report was that at least eight people were injured, the ag plane was leaking a dangerous chemical and all passengers in the small plane were trapped.

When emergency services arrived, there was simulated smoke issuing from under the mock small plane which contained five trapped passengers.

There was also a small grass fire in the area which was extinguished by the Rural Fire Service. The simulated fire under the mock small plane was dealt with by NSW Fire and Rescue.

Due to the ag plane carrying dangerous chemicals, the situation become a Hazmat incident.

NSW Fire and Rescue initiated their Hazmat policy and prepared to deal with the Hazmat emergency while all emergency services were staged together in a safe area under the control of the Senior Police Officer in attendance.

The Hazmat team assessed and decontaminated the scene prior to any other emergency service being able to enter the area to undertake their roles.

The Hazmat team found one patient from the ag plane covered in chemical.

Another patient was in a contaminated area and had to be removed to safety.

Both these patients had to be decontaminated by NSW Fire and Rescue prior to being treated by Ambulance Paramedics.

Once the area was considered safe, SES and Ambulance Paramedics could move in to extricate and treat the five passengers.

One of the passengers (dummy) was found to be deceased due to injuries.

SES members set about getting the injured and trapped patients out and this entailed forcibly opening the doors using their hydraulic jaws of life.

They were then triaged and treated by paramedics before being removed by SES members.

Once the patients were removed using spine boards, they were placed on carry stretcher and taken to a further treatment area where paramedics continued to treat the patients.

The simulated injuries ranged from broken arms to broken legs and major chest injuries.

The day concluded with a debrief where all the agencies were able to discuss how they thought the incident was handled.

This included what was done well and what could be improved next time.

All of the Emergency Services and other agencies worked well together which will be invaluable when a real incident occurs.

The incident was arranged and managed by Scott Fullerton (REMO) Regional Emergency Management Officer from Deniliquin.

SES would like to thank the Scouts who participated as patients as well as all those who took part in the exercise.

The training will prove invaluable to all in the future. Hay Shire Council and Scouts provided refreshments on the day.

The simulated exercise had been many months in the making, which is a requirement every two years as part of its operational policies.

Image: Kylie Brettschneider