ST. GEORGE, Utah — For a few moments, Chezney Yates was dead. She was in a plane crash at St. George Regional Airport.
And it was all a simulation.
With gruesome head makeup more appropriate for the last day of October, Yates took the moment in stride.
“It felt nice,” Yates said. “Just laying there relaxing in the sun.”
Several local fire and police agencies participated in a simulated exercise at St. George Regional Airport Monday in the hopes that they'll be ready for the real thing.
First responders from five southern Utah cities took part in the exercise that is required every three years by the FAA to test response to an emergency at the airport.
More than 60 volunteers, including students from Rocky Vista University and Dixie Technical College, portrayed the injured and diseased. That included Yates, who is a Dixie Tech nursing student.
“I was told just to act my part. I am unconscious from my brain matter falling out,” Yates said. “I had to bite down and clench my teeth, especially as they're doing a sternal rub.”
Jennifer Jensen, an operations specialist with the airport and the co-director of the exercise, said it went smoothly and she was proud of how first responders performed. But they weren't the only ones she was proud of.
“The live actors were amazing,” Jensen said. “They did a great job simulating. I heard them yelling and I was like, 'You understood the assignment, you guys did great, you got it.'”
Jensen said there are aspects to a plane crash that firefighters and police may not see on a daily basis.
“There's metals that can start on fire. You have different types of fuel,” Jensen said. “Obviously, you get a lot more fuel in a jet than you have in a car, so then your fuel fires are different.”
For those who were treated, albeit for pretend, if made them feel better about what would happen if disaster would strike.
“I would feel a lot more comfortable just knowing that a lot of us will be well taken care of,” Yates said.
The first responders gathered together afterwards for a debriefing, and the hope is they won't have to do this again for another three years until the next simulated emergency.
