HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Chuck Welch with Hutchinson Regional Medical Center says it will still be some time before they get a full assessment of a recent mass casualty drill held last week involving the hospital and area fire, rescue and EMS personnel.
The two-day exercise simulated a major earthquake with collapsed buildings and trapped citizens. The first day involved the actual rescue exercise followed by a command center type scenario.
Welch says he saw a lot of good things with the exercise but still wanted to discuss the event with EMS to gather its feedback.
The hospital wanted to conduct the drill to see how prepared it is for such an event including the ability to handle mass trauma, how patients are tracked through the hospital, and dealing with a large number of fatalities all while suffering utility and possible infrastructure issues that could be connected to such an event.
Area EMS, fire, Evergy, Public Works, 911 dispatch and emergency management all participated in the drill.
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