A Reality CheckNewark High School Preps For Prom With Mock Crash Drill

Just  two  days  before  the  Newark  High  School  Junior/Senior  Prom  June  1st,  NHS  partnered  with  Newark-­‐Arcadia  EMS,  Marbletown  Fire  Department,  Newark  Police  Department  and  several  other  area  emergency  response  agencies  to  conduct  a  realisFc  and  compelling  Prom  Crash  Drill  May  30th.

 The  9  a.m.  Mass  Casualty  SimulaFon  realisFcally  and  meaningfully  demonstrated  to  NHS  junior  and  senior  onlookers  the  dangers  of  distracted  and  impaired  driving.  The  Drill  simulated  an  accident  involving  seven  students  _  one  of  which  died  _  resulFng  from  one  of  the  prom-­‐goer’s  irresponsible  decision  to  use  marijuana  and  speed  while  driving.

Junior  Members  of  Newark-­‐Arcadia  EMS,  convincingly  portrayed  the  injured  prom-­‐goers  complete  with  make-­‐up  with  help  from  NHS  graduates  Jaden  Smith  and  Angie  OQerbein.  The  student  actors  also  parFcipated  in  simulated  assessment,  triage,  and  treatment.

 NHS  senior  and  Newark  EMS  Member  Jaiden  Hernandez  who  portrayed  one  of  the  most  criFcally  injured  paFents,  was  extricated  quickly  by  fire  departments  and  underwent  a  simulated  advanced  trauma  assessment  including  airway  management,  ECG  analysis,  and  the  cuWng  off  of  his  prom  clothes  for  a  thorough  assessment.

Marbletown,  Fairville,  and  Newark  Fire  Departments  used  their  extricaFon  and  rescue  tools  to  facilitate  access  to  the  six  injured  students.  It  took  28  minutes  to  safely  and  expertly  remove  all  six  students.

 NHS  senior  and  Newark  EMS  Junior  Member  Kailyn  Crawford  was  the  last  paFent  extricated,  due  to  the  difficult  posiFoning  of  the  vehicles  and  was  loaded  onto  the  LifeNet  helicopter.

NHS  junior  and  Newark  EMS  Junior  Member  Justan  Hughson  expertly  played  the  driver  who  was  “arrested”  by  Newark  PD  aaer  “falsely  insisFng”  he  had  done  nothing  wrong  and  even  “resisted  arrest.”

A  passenger  from  the  second  car,  who  was  pronounced  dead  at  the  scene,  was  portrayed  by  Mid-­‐Lakes  High  School  senior  and  Newark-­‐Arcadia  EMS  Junior  Member  Joshua  Orlopp.  His  “body”  was  removed  from  the  scene  by  Waterman’s  Funeral  Home  on,  what  would  have  been,  the  night  of  his  prom.    

“The  emoFonal  impact  of  this  possibility  was  felt  by  mulFple  students  in  the  crowd,”  Flanagan  said.

Newark-­‐Arcadia  EMS,  led  by  Chief  Todd  Blanchard  and  Deputy  Chief  Lou  Varre,  pracFced  their  triage,  treatment  and  made  transport  decisions  based  on  the  findings  simulated  by  the  Junior  EMS  members,  including  which  paFent  would  be  flown  to  Rochester  on  board  a  LifeNet  of  New  York  helicopter  that  landed  near  the  crash  scene.  

   Marbletown  Fire  Chief  Kyle  VerStraete  coordinated  the  rescue  efforts  with  the  three  fire  departments.  

Newark  PD  managed  the  scene  and  crowd  including  WNHS  photographers  and  videographers  and  “concerned  and  panicked”  parents.  

The  Drill  was  organized  by  Gary  VerStraete,  former  Chief  of  Marbletown  Fire  Department  and  who  is  an  InvesFgator  with  Newark  Police  Department,  and  Shawn  Flanagan,  Director  of  Junior  Membership  for  Newark-­‐Arcadia  EMS  and  who  is  the  lead  Biomedical  Sciences  teacher  at  Newark  High  School.

EMT  Chris  Lozada,  Newark  EMS  Junior  Membership  Supervisor,  created  and  directed  the  Drill  from  the  crash  impact  to  the  injuries  on  the  “vicFms.”  

 “This  is  probably  the  best  executed  drill  I  have  parFcipated  in,  having  been  in  several  as  a  Junior  member  myself,”  Lozada  said  aaerward.

   Wayne  County  911  dispatched  the  drill  and  Woodlane  Community  Church  allowed  for  the  use  of  its  parking  lot  for  staging  and  clean  up.    

Trout’s  Auto  Recycling  from  Waterloo  provided  the  two  damaged  cars  for  the  Drill.  

During  the  iniFal  debriefing  aaer  the  Drill,  Kyle  VerStraete  emphasized  the  importance  of  these  kinds  of  drills.  

 “We  learned  a  lot  today.  We  saw  how  we  can  approach  the  scene  a  liQle  beQer  and  it  was  especially  useful  to  many  of  our  newly-­‐trained  firefighters,”  he  said.  

Flanagan  said  other  Junior  EMS  Members  recorded  valuable  data  from  the  Drill  that  will  be  used  by  the  “agency  Chiefs  to  beQer  guide  educaFon  and  development.”

This  was  the  7th  biennial  Prom  Crash  Drill  held  at  Newark  High  School.  

Photos  generously  provided  by  Stephanie  LiechF  and  Jake  Brown.