Brunswick County first responders hold mass casualty training exercise

OAK ISLAND, NC (WWAY) — First responders in Brunswick County got hands-on experience though a mass causality training exercise.  

The drill, held at the Middleton Park Complex, is a joint effort between Brunswick County EMS and the Oak Island Fire Department, with several other agencies taking part.  

The training used mannequins and live volunteers to simulate a range of injuries—designed to mirror a real-world situation.  

The training included multiple vehicles, training smoke, and medical equipment to make the scenario as immersive as possible.  

“This scenario was a food truck that kind of had a malfunction and exploded,” Robert Hollyfield with Brunswick County EMS said. 

Hollyfield adds the training helps prepare first responders for a situation they hope never happens.  

“It’s not going to be one department that’s responding to an event like this, it’s going to be all of us working as a team, working together. So, it’s really important that we train together also,” Hollyfield said. 

Oak island Fire Chief Lee Price says multiple injuries can make responding to the scene more difficult because they must prioritize who to help first.  

“We actually tag the patients once we make an evaluation with green, yellow, red and black. Green being the best, and of course, black being the worst,” he explained. 

Price notes the majority of the first responders participating are early in their careers.  

He says if you ever find yourself in a mass casualty situation, stay calm, and only help others if you can do it safely.  

“When it becomes chaos and people are running around and screaming, that makes things worse,” Price said. 

Price notes that the department regularly takes part in these types of trainings each year.