The Tri-County Journal
& Chattahoochee Chronicle
PO Box 850, 71 Webb Lane
Buena Vista, GA 31803
229-649-6397
tjournal@alltel.net
exercise turns into real emergency
Webster County Fire/EMS planned to use a “Survive the Crash” simulation last Friday, June 23 in Preston to teach youngsters how dangerous vehicle accidents can be, as well as to teach them how to increase their chances of surviving an accident. However, a real-life accident took precedence, as a car collided with a tractor-trailer in nearby Weston. While the emergency crews were diverted to the actual accident scene rather than the mock accident, it’s a good bet that the youngsters who had gathered for the drill were still impacted; as they learned that the accident was a very serious one.
Webster County Commission Chairman Dave Wills said it may also be a good thing for those involved in the accident that the simulation was scheduled for that morning, because while he’s confident that local EMS would have handled the accident well on any day, the fact that they were “staging” for a drill made the response even quicker.
“What was to have been a simulated exercise, became a real-life, real-time response that provided critical care to the victim, who appeared to
The simulation, which was to involve Stewart and Marion County personnel too, was to be held at the Webster County Agricultural Education building. About 40 children, plus a number of adults, were present to witness the exercise. A few minutes before the exercise was to begin, the Fire/EMS tone was activated by the Middle Flint E-911 Center in Ellaville. The dispatch said that there was a 10-50 (accident), involving multiple vehicles, with a victim trapped in a car. The location of the accident was given as Weston Boulevard (Hwy 520 in Weston). Everyone thought that the dispatch was for the accident simulation, but that 911 had just given the wrong address. Within a minute or so, however, 911 informed everyone that the call was not a drill, that there was a serious accident involving multiple vehicles and an entrapped victim.
The car involved in the accident apparently veered into oncoming traffic, hitting the rear tandem of a tractor-trailer truck. The car was traveling east. The truck was traveling west. The accident happened almost directly in front of Merritt Pecan Company in Weston, where there is a paved median and turn lanes.
Every necessary piece of equipment that would be needed at the actual accident scene had already been staffed for response to the simulation exercise. Obviously, everyone immediately responded to the accident scene in Weston. In addition, as a part of the simulation, a helicopter was already en route to Preston to pick up a “patient” for transport to the Stewart-Webster Hospital. The helicopter was diverted to Weston to pick up the victim entrapped in the vehicle. Webster Fire/EMS, along with personnel from Stewart County, worked for approximately 20 minutes to free the man from the car. After he was removed, he was transported by helicopter to a hospital in Columbus.
