The NSW State Emergency Service (SES) has hosted a simulated mass casualty bus crash exercise, bringing together four emergency service partners to enhance road crash rescue skills and share knowledge.
More than 70 emergency service personnel from the NSW SES, NSW Rural Fire Service, Fire and Rescue NSW, and Ambulance NSW attended the training exercise at Berridale scrap yard in Southern NSW on Saturday (14 September 2024).
In a mock significant road crash rescue scene, teams were put through their paces to safely and efficiently rescue 22 injured patients from an overturned bus. They also took part in four SES-led workshops to increase rescue skills.
The exercise was led by NSW SES Snowy Monaro Local Commander, Chief Inspector Malika Bailey, who is also a local bus driver. She knew three buses were headed for the scrap yard and used her innovation to create a unique training opportunity involving the wrecks.
Chief Inspector Bailey said the inter-agency training exercise increased capability and relationships between emergency services so when they were deployed to a mass casualty event on our highways, they would be more prepared to respond.
"The roads to and from the snow fields are some of the busiest in the country during the winter months, especially with buses dropping people to the slopes. Hazards like snow and black ice make them treacherous at times," Chief Inspector Bailey said.
"That said, it's not every day you arrive on scene to find three full buses and an SUV involved, but it is always best to practice for these major incidents so we are all prepared should they ever eventuate on our roads."
Adding to the complexity of the training scenario, Chief Inspector Bailey said none of the casualties wounded could walk and all had to be manually extricated.
"We created complex entrapments of the bus drivers, which is the reality of what we would find at a crash scene. This was done so we could all think about the resources and skills we would need in a rescue scenario like this," she said.
"This training exercise brought road crash rescue experts from a number of organisations together to learn best practice and share skills, so we can continue to enhance our capabilities.
"The NSW SES is proud to have led this exercise, and we're always looking to improve and learn new skills. We all left more confident in our assets, skill and training."
Following the training exercise on Saturday, participating NSW SES volunteers backed it up by walking overnight on the Snowy Mountains after being activated for a land search.
NSW SES members searched for a 61-year-old man overnight, alongside NSW Police, and he was successfully located about 9am on Sunday.
