Airport officials call emergency drill a success

Posted at: 09/15/2012 6:17 PM | Updated at: 09/15/2012 11:15 PM
By: Joangel Concepcion | WHEC.com

If you were driving near the airport on Saturday, you may have seen what looked like an emergency situation.

But no need to worry, it was all part of an emergency drill.

The drill was the first of it's kind at the airport. It was meant to be a training exercise for emergency crews and airport officials to see if they could handle an actual disaster.

The big question on Saturday was what if? What if there was an emergency situation at the airport? Are emergency crews and airport officials ready?

Well the Director of Aviation says yes and today the airport made sure everyone was on the same page, just in case.

These men and women look like they are in pain, but they are actually acting. It's all part of disaster drill... one that officials say will prepare emergency crews for worst case scenarios.

Michael Giardino, Director of Aviation says, "I think we've stressed our capabilities here and we have a lot of help from outside community partners as far as emergency response."

Giardino says it's never really happened on this scale, but he knows very well that it could. That's why he says it's critical to communicate and work together.

"We have agreements to support them and they have agreements to support us should disaster strike."

EMS, Fire Rescue and more than 150 volunteers took to the runway. Thrown head first into a real life scenario, even setting a school bus on fire.

The accident scene, down to the injuries, were as real as it gets.

The crew says, "It's always fun to get a little broken nose now and then."

He describes the process of making it all look real using, "A dye for the face to make it all bloody. Toilet paper for any burns. Just kind of use a little gel."

Officials say they don't believe something like this will ever happen in our area. But they say drills like these may one day end up saving lives.

Giardino says, "The drill is important for us to learn from the drill so we can make our procedures better. It is a community effort."

The airport has had drills before, but nothing on this scale. The airport will simulate an emergency scenario like this every 3 years.

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