Combat medics save lives after chaotic traffic accident

Soldiers from 9th Hospital Center, 1st Medical Brigade provide lifesaving medical intervention to casualties involved in an accident on July 10. While conducting convoy operations, the Soldiers noticed a dark, brooding cloud of towering smoke from a rolled over truck, sprung into action and provided assistance until EMT services arrived. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Yaeri Green)

FORT HOOD, TX, UNITED STATES

07.15.2019

Story by Spc. Yaeri Green 

13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary)  

FORT HOOD, Texas – Soldiers from 9th Hospital Center, 1st Medical Brigade provided lifesaving medical intervention to casualties involved in an accident on July 10.

9th Hospital Center Soldiers were conducting convoy operations along one of the post’s isolated training areas when they noticed a dark, brooding cloud of towering smoke from a rolled over truck.

As the convoy got closer to the smoke, they noticed an accident that involved two vehicles and one casualty on the road.

“When we got closer, we realized the extent of the accident,” said Cpt. Jillian Guy, commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 11th Field Hospital. “Everyone quickly realized that we were the first responders. Our main priority was to move the first casualty away from the burning vehicle and save his life.”

The convoy made a hasty stop and the Soldiers quickly approached the first casualty bystanders had removed from the burning vehicle.

“My thought running up to the scene was to get him away from the burning vehicle as soon as possible and to control the bleeding,” said Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Newell, acting first sergeant for 11th Field Hospital. “I was also thinking that we didn’t know if he had injured his spine so I knew we needed to use cervical spine precautions as soon as we got to him before we could move him.”

Medics took lead relocating casualty further from the burning vehicle using cervical spine precautions. Shortly afterwards, the vehicle’s fuel compartment exploded.

Once the casualties were removed from immediate danger, medics began providing aid to the more severely injured casualty.

“Soldiers swiftly delivered care to the first casualty applying a tourniquet for open bilateral femur fractures,” Guy said. “I saw the second casualty walking around disoriented so I grabbed two medics to help treat him.”

Medics applied tourniquets to the first casualty proficiently to control the bleeding and provided airway management and trauma care. The second casualty suffered from a suspected traumatic brain injury and facial trauma. The medics treated and stabilized both casualties until the emergency medical services arrived.

Even after the EMS arrived, Newell, Sgt. Eric Johnston, combat medic team leader and Sgt. Mariela Jones, platoon sergeant, remained and continued to provide help.

“We were starting fluids, bandaging the wounds and placing the casualty on a spin board,” Newell said. “Once he was on a spin board, Sergeant Jones moved to provide airway until he was placed on a helicopter.”

The intervention did not stop until the casualties were evacuated. The first casualty was air evacuated by Baylor Scott & White, and the second casualty was taken to Carl R. Darnell Army Medical Center by the EMS.

“The medics from three different companies quickly became one cohesive unit,” Guy said. “I have never been more proud of everyone on scene. Even the non-medical MOS Soldiers did an amazing job with crowd control, driving vehicles safely to the scene and comforting others who had seen the trauma.”

When Soldiers came across a situation that needed immediate aid, they reacted expeditiously and saved the lives of those casualties. Military police and EMS commended the Soldiers for their quick reaction, professionalism and proficient medical skill set. 

9th Hospital Center Soldiers are prepared to provide expert medical care at moment’s notice and they will continue to train in order to stay ready.

“Tragedy can happen at any time and you need to be prepared,” Johnson said. “It was an eye-opening experience that nobody was expecting.”

Soldiers from 9th Hospital Center, 1st Medical Brigade, pose for a picture during a recent training event. On July 10 during convoy operations, Soldiers from 9th Hospital Center provided lifesaving medical intervention to casualties involved in an accident they encountered. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Yaeri Green)

Presidio resident saves infant daughter's life thanks to CPR course

Photo By Marcus Fichtl | Presidio of Monterey garrison commander, Col. Greg Ford(left), presents Presidio firefighter Keith Fulton and local resident, Kristin Martin with awards for a June 6 rescue of Martin's infant daughter, June 17, 2019. Martin used CPR skills taught by Fulton and the Presidio fire department. 

MONTEREY, CA, UNITED STATES

06.25.2019

Story by Marcus Fichtl 

Presidio of Monterey Public Affairs  

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PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY, Calif.– Kristin Martin saved her infant daughter's life at her Ord Military Community residence, June 6, thanks to her quick-thinking and a firefighter who taught her CPR.

Martin said she was eating lunch with her two daughters when her one-year-old, June, began choking on a tortilla chip. The coughing fit soon escalated but nothing the 31-year-old mother of three from Tallahassee, Florida, did, dislodged the chip.

Martin dialed 911.

She sent her three-year-old daughter to her neighbors to get help as she took June to the front lawn, hoping for a good Samaritan to walk by; but no one came – neighbor or passerby. Martin was on her own.

The nurse-by-trade then did what she never expected she would have to do, she began CPR on her own daughter.

Muscle memory from a CPR class kicked in. Without hesitation she alternated between palm-faced back blows and chest thrusts, dislodging the tortilla chip just as firefighter Keith Fulton and Presidio's Engine 61 came blaring to the scene – a matter of moments Martin said felt like “forever.”

Fulton called the scene he walked into “amazing.” The only sign a life had almost been lost were the tears still rolling down Martin's face. Baby June was OK.

“I walked in and it was Kristin who was in obvious distress, but her daughter looked amazing – not even crying,” Fulton told Presidio Public Affairs in a phone interview Thursday.

According to Fulton, Martin saved her child's life in record speed, as his engine arrived no more than three minutes after dispatch and about 5-6 minutes after she made her 911 call.

Then the mother and firefighter realized that what happened that day came because of a serendipitous meeting earlier this year.

“I was telling Kristin what a good job she did and that's when she told me, 'I took your [CPR] class,'” Fulton said. “Right off the bat, I was emotional – proud, happy.”

The 31-year-old Army veteran and Paradise, California native, who once cleared fires while deployed to Afghanistan said he began teaching CPR at the Presidio to overcome a fear of public speaking by sharing knowledge about something he knew well and believed in.

Fulton said the five-hour class certified by the American Heart Association teaches adult, child and infant CPR, use of the automated external defibrillator – a portable device that uses electric shocks to restart a heartbeat, and the use of a naloxone nasal spray to counter opioid overdoses. The class costs $25 for local military residents, cheaper than the $125 Martin said she saw offered outside the Ord community.

More importantly, Fulton said, "[CPR] empowers you – it gives you to the power to intervene.”

Martin agreed.

“I knew what I needed to do,” she said. “Had I not known [CPR], I wouldn't have been able to save my own daughter's life.”

On June 17, Presidio garrison commander, Col. Greg Ford, presented Martin an Award of Exemplary Action and Fulton the Civilian Service Commendation Medal for instructing Martin and more than a hundred local residents on CPR the past five months.

For information on how you can get CPR/AED certified contact: Army Community Services at the Gen. Stilwell Community Center at (831) 242-7760 or the Presidio Fire Department at (831) 242-7701.

Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting: Responding to the Call

Photo By Sgt. Isaac Martinez | U.S. Marines assigned to Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) pose for a picture beside their OshKosh P-19R Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Vehicle aboard Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., July 15, 2019. These ARFF Marines provided support to an American Airlines aircraft that had an emergency landing on the air station. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Isaac D. Martinez) 

YUMA, AZ, UNITED STATES

07.16.2019

Story by Sgt. Isaac Martinez 

Marine Corps Air Station Yuma  

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION YUMA, Ariz. (July 16, 2019) – As smoke filled the cabin of an American Airlines aircraft carrying 154 passengers, the pilots and crew were forced to make a quick decision. 

“When the flight attendants told us that there was smoke, we immediately began an emergency descent and initiated a diversion from our route,” said Edward Chuss, the pilot of the American Airlines flight from San Diego to Charlotte.

That’s when Chuss made contact with the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Yuma’s Air Traffic Control (ATC) Tower and informed the Marines of the situation, requesting an emergency landing on the air station. MCAS Yuma is referred to as the “busiest air station in the Marine Corps” boasting excellent year-round flying conditions for the hundreds of aircraft and over 14,000 personnel that train aboard it.

Shortly after, the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) Marines with Section One heard the ringing of their “crash phone,” and ATC informed them that the aircraft was 20 miles out from the flight line and coming to an emergency landing on the air station with smoke reported in the cabin of the aircraft. Within minutes, the ARFF Marines – dressed in full firefighting gear – and two OshKosh P-19R Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Vehicles were dispatched to the landing zone to provide assistance to the aircraft and its crew. The pilots of the aircraft requested that the ARFF Marines checked the wheels of the aircraft for ‘hot brakes’ after it landed. The term ‘hot brakes’ is in reference to when an aircraft lands and the breaks may be hot enough to set the wheels on fire.

“Rescue 25 (myself) and the Rescueman from the other P-19 dismounted our vehicles and walked up to the crew that was standing outside the aircraft,” said Lance Cpl. Zachery Delaney, an aircraft rescue and firefighting rescueman stationed aboard MCAS Yuma. “We were asked to check for hot brakes and see if that was the issue, but were later informed that wasn’t the problem.”

ARFF is the only asset in Yuma, aside from the Yuma Proving Ground assets, that are trained to handle aircraft emergencies. In addition, the ARFF Marines train daily to be ready for any aircraft emergencies, civilian or military in nature.

Facilitating everything behind the scenes, the Marines and civilians with Base Operations, who are ultimately in charge of managing the airfield, all taxiways, and runways, were working expeditiously to ensure that all appropriate parties were notified and responding to the emergency in an efficient manner. Greg McShane, the Airfield Operations Officer, and the Marines that work with him had to ensure that no other aircraft would be affected by the emergency landing. 

“That’s just part of what we do, support in-flight emergencies that may happen,” said McShane. “Fortunately for us, our folks are so well-trained to handle such emergencies that we can treat and respond to aircraft emergencies with little to no impact to our own operations.”

Roughly 70 Marines and civilians aboard the air station were involved with supporting the emergency landing, some on standby, with several different sections coming into play to lend a helping hand to the pilots, crew, and people aboard the American Airlines flight. Safety is paramount and the personnel that provided support to American Airlines during the incident prove that safety is the number one priority at MCAS Yuma.

New Student Indoc - Firefighting

GREAT LAKES, IL, UNITED STATES
07.16.2019
Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Amanda Kitchner
Naval Service Training Command 

GREAT LAKES, Ill., (July 16, 2019) – Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) midshipmen candidates combat a simulated fire at the USS Chief Firefighting and Damage Control Trainer at Recruit Training Command (RTC) during firefighting training as part of NROTC New Student Indoctrination. The young men and women from across the country are entering their freshman year of the NROTC program at universities nationwide this fall. They are undergoing a three-week indoctrination program hosted at RTC, the U. S. Navy’s only boot camp, which provides standardized entry-level militarization and prepares midshipmen with a common training orientation. They are led by Navy-option 1st class and Marine-option 2nd class midshipmen, instructors and staff from NROTC units across the country. The staff is overseeing and instructing the midshipmen candidates with assistance from the Recruit Division Commanders and instructors assigned to RTC as well as active duty Marine Corps Drill Instructors. New Student Indoctrination provides basic training in five warfighting fundamentals – Fire Fighting, Damage Control, Seamanship, Watchstanding and Small Arms Handling and Marksmanship – to begin creating basically trained, smartly disciplined, tough and courageous future Navy and Marine Corps Officers. (U. S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Amanda S. Kitchner/Released)

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Amanda Kitchner

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Amanda Kitchner

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Amanda Kitchner

Black Sea Air Show

A Romanian boy tries on a firefighter's helmet during the Black Sea Air Show at Mihail Kogalniceanu International Airport, July 13, 2019. The U.S. Military was invited to the event to set up static displays of equipment and interact with the local community. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Andrew Wash, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)

MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU, ROMANIA
07.13.2019
Story by Pvt. Laurie Ellen Schubert
5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment   

Mihail Kogalniceanu International Airport’s first air show, free and open to the public, brought together civilian and military aircraft from multiple countries including Romanian, Italian, and American Armed Forces. All parties volunteered to entertain and educate the local community.

The U.S. Military was invited to participate in the celebration, providing vehicle and equipment displays for the event involving a fire truck and ambulance from the 1440th Firefighting Detachment, Michigan National Guard; a UH-60 Blackhawk from 3rd Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, from Fort Riley, Kansas; and a Humvee brought by 152nd Movement Control Team, from Fort Carson, Colorado.

People from the local community gained a chance to explore and interact with U.S. Service Members and the U.S. Military equipment on display.

A free air show for the local community around Mihail Kogalniceanu International Airport, Romania, July 13, 2019 displays aircraft from Romanian, Italian, and American Armed Forces along with civilian aircraft. The U.S. Military was invited to participate by providing displays of several vehicles and equipment. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Laurie Ellen Schubert, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)