Preparedness and Response to a Rural Mass Casualty Incident Workshop Summary (2011) / Chapter Skim
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2 Case Examples: 2008 Mexican Hat, Utah, Incident and 2010 Albert Pike, Arkansas, Flood
2 Case Examples: 2008 Mexican Hat, Utah, Incident and 2010 Albert Pike, Arkansas, Flood
Pages 7-20
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From page 7... ...
To set the stage for the IOM panel discussions, two case examples of rural mass casualty incidents were presented by those directly involved in the emergency services response. In addition to the accounts of the Utah bus accident, a nontransportation example is provided in the accounts of the response to the rapid and severe flooding of the Caddo and Little Missouri rivers near Albert Pike, Arkansas, in June 2010.
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From page 8... ...
In the future, he said, we can expect to see more tour buses on rural roads as people set out on more ski trips and other expeditions to see our beautiful country "up close and personal." THE 2008 MEXICAN HAT, UTAH, INCIDENT AND RESPONSE: LOCAL PERSPECTIVE Linda Larson, EMS director for San Juan County, Utah, provided a local EMS perspective of the 2008 Mexican Hat incident. Currently an emergency medical technician (EMT)
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From page 9... ...
The EMS team alerted the local hospital and the emergency manager, who sent the mass casualty trailer to the scene. The San Juan County EMS is voluntary, but has a fulltime interfacility transport vehicle that just happened to be in the area, about 20 minutes away.
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The Utah EMS Strike Team was also activated, assisting San Juan County for 48 hours by responding to all other EMS calls (discussed in detail hereafter)
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From page 11... ...
Transportation Eight ambulances from San Juan County and four from the Navaho Nation were dispatched to the scene. Three ambulances from Grand County EMS and two from Southwest Memorial Hospital in Cortez, Colorado, were waiting at San Juan Hospital to assist with further transport.
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From page 12... ...
Coincidentally, Larson remembered that at the time of the Mexican Hat crash, there was an ongoing, heated debate about whether an increase in cell phone towers would decrease the area's inherent beauty. However, after the bus crash, a cell phone tower was installed in the area and painted brown so it blends in.
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From page 13... ...
Finally, Larson reiterated that the Utah Bureau of EMS and the Southeastern Strike Team were instrumental, discussed in greater depth by Paul Patrick. Lessons Learned Understanding the gaps in their capability to respond to MCIs through the Mexican Hat incident, Larson emphasized important lessons learned for local EMS.
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From page 14... ...
is often activated to cover the routine EMS calls for a 48-hour period. After the Mexican Hat incident, the state strike team responded to calls in San Juan County, giving the local personnel a chance to debrief and refresh.
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From page 15... ...
Emergency Management Agency, and EMTBasic and volunteer fire chief of Mineral Springs Fire and Rescue. The Flood On June 11, 2010, at approximately 2:00 a.m., Dunson's county pager alerted him that two fire departments from the northern end of Howard County were en route to respond to flooding in neighboring Albert Pike.
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From page 16... ...
There was no cell phone service, but an occasional text message could get through in certain areas. One technology that did work was ham radio, and as a ham radio operator, Dunson was able to set up radio relays to send outgoing messages.
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From page 17... ...
EMS needs to participate in the development of integrated plans for not only mass casualty incidents but also incidents with mass fatalities. Physical and Psychological Support for First Responders As in the Mexican Hat incident, the well-being of the EMS personnel, both physically and emotionally, was also a concern.
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From page 18... ...
Patrick noted that it was his goal to increase civilian–military collaboration in an effort to learn from each other's successes. THEMES IDENTIFIED BY WORKSHOP PARTICIPANTS The Mexican Hat incident and the Albert Pike flooding were reviewed as case examples of rural MCIs, and the following challenges to EMS response emerged: · Communications and notification · Access and transportation to the scene · Patient tracking · Limited resources · Limited ALS · Availability of medical direction on scene · Availability of regionalized trauma centers · Psychological consequences to victims and responders · Multistate response In the Mexican Hat incident, in spite of these challenges, communication to and from the scene was excellent, due to a particularly competent dispatch.
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From page 19... ...
Ongoing threats to progress include the current economic situation and its impact on the availability of funding to support development and infrastructure; lack of technology, or lack of access to existing technologies; the lack of data to support EMS policy decision making; the need for research to support best practices; and the lack of focus on coordinated prevention.
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