MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Not only are they responsible for protecting our city, but law enforcement officers need to be fully equipped to help one another in the case of an emergency.
More than 20 officers attended a training put on by HealthNet Aeromedical Services on July 11, 2018. The training aimed at preparing officers for “worst-case scenario” situations such as aiding a fellow officer in the event that he/she become injured.
West Virginia State Police and the Masontown Volunteer Fire Department hosted the exercises that served deputy U.S. Marshals, SWAT personnel, ATF special agents, and Morgantown and Clarksburg Police Departments.
The training helped officers become more familiar with equipment and other personnel that they would need to rely on in the case of an emergency.
The day’s events included classroom training on:
- instructing officers on communicating with their aircraft
- setting up landing zones
- safely loading/unloading injured patient aboard a hellicopter
- refresher training on fundamentals such as bleeding control, tourniquet usage and principals of medical care under fire
Along with the classroom training, officers participated in real-life “officer down” scenarios to practice their skills that combined all of their knowledge from the classroom training session.
“This is training we never hope to use,” said Dewayne Haddix, Resident Agent-in-Charge for the ATF’s Clarksburg Field Office. “However, because we often work in remote areas, where emergency trauma care may take more than an hour to reach by road, training with HealthNet’s aeromedical crews helps to ensure that if we have to take care of one of our own, we don’t waste a minute.”
Story by Hannah Williams