NSW Ambulance staff have taken part in a multi-agency simulation featuring a passenger plane that crashed on the tarmac at an airport.
Imagine a disaster where 151 people have died and a further 70 are being rushed to hospital with various types of injuries.
This is what happened at Sydney Airport earlier this month – but thankfully it was only a training exercise.
Exercise Galvanise – a simulated plane crash – was a multi-agency operation which included representatives from NSW Police, Fire and Rescue NSW, a Sydney Airport Disaster Victim Registration team and NSW Ambulance.
Our representatives included Inspectors Michael Corlis and Geoff Senior, Superintendent John Millevoi and Chaplain Jane Mahon.
Given the exercise didn’t involve the retrieval of patients, the efforts of the aforementioned NSW Ambulance personnel focused on coordinating the recovery phase of the crash.
An Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) was set up, which saw Michael and John working alongside other emergency service representatives to oversee the transportation of ‘patients’ to appropriate medical facilities.
Geoff was assisting with coordination efforts at the scene of the crash, while Jane was also on the ground, as an observer.
“We attended the exercise in a command and control capacity,” Michael said.
“It’s a great opportunity for other emergency services to understand our procedures, but also for us to understand theirs.
“The knowledge that we gain from these multi-agency exercises can help us better prepare for actual major incidents, like a plane crash, which may occur in the future.”
