participate in simulated emergencyCorrespondent
Drill gives fire, first aid
squads hands-on practice
Sunrise Assisted Living residents
participate in simulated emergency
Correspondent
PHOTOS BY CHRIS KELLY Residents of the Sunrise Assisted Living facility, Route 79, Marlboro, are evacuated from the building — as they would be during a real emergency — as part of a disaster drill conducted by local fire departments and first aid squads on June 22.
MARLBORO — It wasn’t a real emergency, but it was close.
On June 22, residents and administrators at Sunrise Assisted Living, Route 79, participated in an emergency response drill with volunteer members of local fire departments and first aid squads.
In order to test the efficiency of the emergency and evacuation plans at Sunrise, a fake explosion was set off at about 10 a.m. A smoke machine was set off in the kitchen, and firefighters had to rescue a mannequin from that room. At the same time, residents were being evacuated as quickly and as cautiously as possible by emergency responders. They were taken by ambulance and van to the Solomon Schechter Day School on nearby School Road East.
Sunrise celebrated its first anniversary on Jan. 15. Although a drill such as this one had never been attempted before, the facility conducts three fire drills a month, during which all the residents evacuate the building. There are 60 residents currently living at Sunrise, and when the June 22 drill was conducted, there were about 20 employees participating, including supervisors.
Tom Buchley Jr. and James Caulfield, both 17 and from Marlboro, rescue a “victim” during the disaster drill at the Sunrise Assisted Living facility.
When he was asked why the drill took place, Sunrise Executive Director Darren Seise said, "To practice procedures with the Marlboro EMS [responders] and fire department and to be prepared."
The Marlboro First Aid Squad and the Marlboro Fire Department were joined by volunteers from the Colts Neck, Robertsville and Morganville fire companies. Colts Neck First Aid Squad volunteers also participated in "treating" the residents.
Planning for the drill started with a series of meetings between Sunrise administrators and area fire officials.
"We had to coach them on the procedures and what to do if there was a real emergency," Seise said of the participating departments. "If there was a fire, they would know what our staff was doing."
Christina Presten of Marlboro, the appointed evacuation supervisor, communicates with superiors about her progress and needs during the disaster drill.
Tom Rose, assistant chief of the Marlboro Fire Department, Route 79, has been with the department for 12 years. He reviewed the outcome of the emergency drill in a conversation with the News Transcript.
"It went pretty good. We accomplished our objective," he said, adding that the only setback during the drill was a resident who complained of chest pains.
While such a drill had never before taken place at Sunrise, the fire department conducts what are called "tabletop drills," Rose said. That is when a representative of the department takes a walk through a building to get an idea of the layout of the facility in case of an actual emergency, he explained.
The assistant chief said the Marlboro Fire Department volunteers participate in an annual drill in a building at the former Marlboro State Psychiatric Hospital in which dummies are used to represent people in danger.
Gregory Aronne, 19, of the Marlboro Fire Department, participates in the disaster drill at the Sunrise Assisted Living facility.
During the disaster drill at Sunrise Assisted Living on June 22, some of the residents pretended to be sick in order to help the first aid squad volunteers train to do their jobs in the event of a real emergency.
"The cooperation was fantastic," Seise said of the participating fire departments and first aid squads. "They learned from it, so it was a great experience. They established a command post quickly and directed orders from there."
Seise said the residents and the employees at Sunrise "handled it beautifully."
"It was done quickly, and the residents were calm," he said.
Tom Rose, assistant chief of the Marlboro Fire Department, keeps the disaster drill organized from his mobile command unit.
The drill lasted about an hour, and afterward there was a barbecue for everyone who participated.
Before the drill was conducted, the residents of Sunrise and their families were notified. Two people did not want to participate, but everyone else did.
"It was reassuring for the residents as far as safety is concerned," Seise said. "Everyone had a positive attitude."
The Marlboro Fire Department sent 14 volunteers to participate. In total, about 35 fire company and first aid squad volunteers took part in the drill.