The International Center for Prehospital and Disaster Medicine (ICPDM), a division of the Regional Emergency Medical Services Authority (REMSA) in Reno, Nevada, utilizes EMS providers from REMSA to teach National Disaster Life Support™ (NDLS™) courses in Nevada and around the country–with hopes of never having to use it.Figure 1Figure 2

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Unfortunately, on September 16, 2011, REMSA did have to put it to use, responding to a disaster at the Reno Air Races in which a race plane crashed into the gathering of spectators. The crash resulted in 8 immediate deaths and over 50 injuries. Several instructors who teach our Advanced Disaster Life Support (ADLS®) courses were either on scene, providing stand-by medical care for the event, or responded to the scene after the crash. One of the on-scene personnel said that he just clicked into doing what he had been teaching the week before. REMSA transported 54 patients from the scene within 62 minutes of the crash occurring. The REMSA Communications Center handled all the dispatching of REMSA air and ground units to the crash site and requested mutual aid, all while continuing to handle regular 911 calls.

The training that ICPDM and REMSA conducts and offers to others clearly proved its value during this disaster response. The lessons learned from this incident will improve the training provided. Photo courtesy of AP Photo/Grass Valley Union, Tim O’Brien.

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