First on scene are school officials, followed by first responders. They assess the crash, then begin to carefully remove the victims, most through the safety hatch on the roof of the bus.
“It is going to be a real-life scenario,” Harrison Twp. Fire Chief Mark Lynch said of the training exercise. “It is laying on its side. Whenever we get on the scene of a crash, we are either going to use that or a rear door if we are able to get to it.”
All of the victims are given triage tags. Each color represents an injury status, from minor to fatal. The survivors are treated on scene or loaded on to ambulances and taken to the hospital. Those who did not survive are not removed until the investigation is completed.
“Part of the program is going to be the training of the bus drivers, what do they do whenever there is an incident, and what does the administration from the schools do also?” Lynch said.
School officials said mass casualty incidents are not something they want to have on their minds, but they would rather be prepared.
“We want the parents to know that there are procedures in place to care for their students and get them treatment as quickly as possible,” said Elmer Beard, Northridge Local Schools media information officer.
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