GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — First responders will be coming together in Grand Haven for a mass casualty training exercise on Wednesday.
The event includes law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical service providers, dispatchers and volunteer actors. Local hospitals will also be participating by receiving calls from the exercise and will practice handling a surge of patients at a later date.
Lou Hunt, Ottawa County Emergency Management director, said holding simulations like this allow first responders to train for real-life mass casualty events.
“The purpose of the exercise is to develop the best capability in Ottawa County possible for responding to large-scale mass casualty incidents,” said Hunt. “We are already confident in our first responders and medical professionals in Ottawa; they all know their jobs well, but this exercise tests coordination and efficiency across the disciplines as they work together."
Hunt said debriefs held after these exercises can help departments learn where improvement is needed.
“Our best measurement of success will be a comprehensive after-action report that identifies where we need to grow, and we will then make the necessary changes,” Hunt said.
The exercise is taking place at Harvest Church in Grand Haven. It will be closed to the public beginning at 3 p.m. Wednesday, with the simulation running from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m.
