May 6, 10:10 a.m. – Dispatch receives a frantic call reporting a vehicle crash. The caller describes seeing an accident involving a collision between a tour bus and a semi-truck.
Within minutes, lights and sirens fill the air as crews race to the scene. The first to arrive is Nevada National Security Sites’ (NNSS) Protective Force, shortly followed by several fire trucks, ambulances and emergency response personnel.
Fortunately, this incident was only a drill – but the response was real.
NNSS’ Emergency Planning Section conducted an immersive, large-scale emergency drill designed to simulate a multi-victim vehicle crash and test how crews respond under pressure.
The realistic training scenario challenged firefighters, paramedics and emergency personnel to secure and assess the scene to extricate and treat multiple victims in a chaotic and fast-moving environment.
The drill mimicked real-world conditions and was intentionally designed to look and feel as realistic as possible. Volunteers acting as victims were provided simulated injuries and trauma symptoms that ranged from bruising and lacerations to severe chest pain and head injuries. Some actors were instructed to be disoriented or unresponsive, forcing responders to make quick decisions based on the scene.
Crews practiced every aspect of a real emergency response, including establishing a unified incident command, scene assessment, vehicle extrication, patient triage and treatment, and inter-agency communication. In addition to testing technical response and rescue, the drill emphasized teamwork and coordination between agencies in a high-stress environment.
Scenarios of this scale require assistance through mutual aid agreements with other local agencies. Both the Nye County Sheriff’s Office and Mercy Air actively participated in the drill, while other partners – including the Southern Nevada Health District, Nye County Department of Emergency Management, City of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas Emergency Management – attended as observers.
“If we train hard, work hard, and push through the uncomfortable situations presented during drills and exercises, we are that much more prepared to take action if the real thing happens,,” said LeAnn Gatdula, an NNSS emergency management coordinator.
Regularly executing drills like this is critical to ensuring emergency response personnel are always ready to act when every second counts. It not only allows responders to put their skills and knowledge to the test, it also provides evaluators and controllers with valuable insights and feedback to help crews identify strengths and areas for continued improvement and training.
“The value of training isn’t in hoping to use it, it’s in hoping you never have to,” said NNSS Emergency Management Coordinator Nikki McPherson. “We prepare for the worst day of our careers and the worst day in someone else’s life because preparation turns panic into purpose.”
Note: All photos shown and scenarios described in this article were simulated for a training event.