Press Release:

Joint Emergency Exercise

Merseyside Scout Emergency Team hosted a joint training exercise with Chorley and Southport Divisions of St John Ambulance last Thursday evening. The exercise took Place at Tawd Vale, the Merseyside Scouts County Camp Site at Lathom, near Ormskirk. Members of the St John Divisions and the Scout Emergency Team were briefed on a scenario where a mid-air collision had occurred between a passenger aircraft and a military plane. The main fall-out of the incident was some miles away and the Emergency Services were fully utilised dealing with this. The volunteer groups had been drafted in to assist to deal with a report that debris from the military jet had fallen in this rural area and there were resulting casualties.

Search Teams were mobilised and the site of the reported incident quickly located. Simulated casualties, which included the pilot who had ejected from the plane and parachuted to earth to be left dangling in a tree, were immediately given First Aid treatment. Further help was summoned in the form of four, fully equipped, off-road ambulances belonging to St John Ambulance.

The trained crews quickly took control of the incident, prioritising the evacuation of casualties and providing advanced treatment to stabilise the casualties before moving them by ambulance to Medical help. The exercise concluded with a well deserved hot drink and debrief.

Both St John Ambulance and the Scout Emergency Team volunteers meet on a regular basis to train in First Aid techniques to enable them to deal with all emergency situations they may encounter whilst ‘on duty’.

Volunteer groups like St John could be called upon in the event of a major incident and are invited to participate along side the emergency services when they have exercises.

For more information about the Emergency Team please contact;

Les Shaw.  (Email; emergency@merseysidescouts.com)