50 ‘Victims’ Hurt in ‘Fire’At Headliner in Neptune
By ANDREW CANGIANO
A fire broke out at the Headliner in Neptune Tuesday night, with about 50 victims taken to the hospital with injuries.
This mock emergency situation was actually a full scale exercise to test the capabilities and preparedness of first responders in the county.
Neptune police were the first to respond and were followed by emergency personnel and firefighters from Neptune and other townships in Monmouth County.
Harry Conover, the Emergency Management Coordinator for Monmouth County, said the purpose of the drill was to test the countys emergency operations plan and the response of mass casualty and fire units.
We want to be preventive in Monmouth County, Conover said. Nows the time you want to find problems.
The drill was done in real time and treated as though it was a real emergency. Victims were dressed up in fake cuts and burns.
Firefighters went into the Headliner, which was filled with smoke to simulate a real fire, to rescue the victims.
Joseph Malysko, a member of the Unexcelled Fire Company in Neptune, said it was a good chance for the firefighters to practice for emergency situations.
Coaster Photo
An emergency drill was held at the Headliner in Neptune Tuesday to test preparedness.
It helps to find where we might have deficiencies so that we can correct them, he said. Its not everyday you get a fire call, or a haz mat [short for hazardous materials] call.
Once outside, the victims were diagnosed and treated by triage units from local rescue squads.
Molly Berkowitz, the treatment officer for the Shark River Hills first aid squad, described how the victims were taken care of.
She said emergency workers separated the victims into triage categories based on the severity of their wounds.
Berkowitz said the drill helps emergency responders to be more prepared in case a similar situation should occur.
It gets the kinks out, she said. If this were real, you remember how you did it at the Headliner.
Its familiarity, she added. Practice makes perfect.
Michael Bascom, the Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator for Neptune, said the drill simulated a real disaster.
Its simulated chaos, which is what its supposed to be, he said. If it was real, it would be chaos like this.
The good thing is, its controlled chaos, Bascom said. You have a command structure in place. Everybodys doing what theyre supposed to be doing.
This is how you prepare for real disasters. Its one thing to write your plans, and tabletop your plans, and think about your plans, but its another thing to actually put them in action.
You put them in action, you find the deficiencies, you find what youre very good at, Bascom said. You find what needs to be addressed, and you focus your resources there in the future.
The immediate area around the Headliner was quarantined off, as it was labeled a hot zone, which meant it could have been exposed to radiation.
Victims who lay within the area and emergency personnel who treated them were not allowed to leave until they were checked for contamination by county hazardous materials workers.
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