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Emergency services test extreme weather response

Holly Nicholsin Hemel Hempstead
Holly Nichols/BBC Emergency responders in high-visibility jackets and helmets gather on an indoor snow slope, treating two false models lying on the ground while others prepare a stretcher nearby. A ski lift and a mural of snowy mountains are visible in the background, and red safety barriers mark the area.Holly Nichols/BBC
The training challenged the emergency services' multi-agency approach in sub-zero temperatures

Emergency services and first response agencies came together for a simulated training exercise at an indoor ski slope on Monday.

Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue, ambulance staff and police officers were among those who responded to a simulated building collapse at the Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead.

Alex Woodman, chief fire officer and chair of the Hertfordshire Local Resilience Forum (HLRF), described the rescue exercise under extreme weather conditions as "crucial".

"We cannot operate as sole agencies, coming together as that mixed agency team [and] making sure that our systems work with each other couldn't be more important," he added.

Hertfordshire County Council Rescue workers in helmets and high‑visibility jackets treat a trauma mannequin in a simulated environment. The mannequin is lying on a stretcher beside a fenced ski area, while others assist nearby.Hertfordshire County Council
The exercise included a section of scaffolding which had collapsed, simulating a building collapse

Woodman, 45, said the scenario "pushes the crews" and "makes them operate differently" to test them in an "extreme condition".

The exercise, called Frostbite, featured actors and mannequins acting as casualties.

A section of collapsed scaffolding was used to mock up the scene in sub-zero temperatures on the slope.

Dave King, resilience manager at the East of England Ambulance Service, described the simulation as a "Swiss army knife" which allowed first responders to practice multiple different scenarios.

He said teams could look at "responding in the cold weather" and getting patients out of a collapsed structure, which "could be transposed to a vehicle collision".

He added that the lessons learnt from this exercise would "directly impact patients moving forward into the colder time of the year".

Lily-May Symonds/BBC A close-up image of Dave King wearing an orange high-visibility vest indoors, with emergency responders and equipment visible behind them in a ski facility setting.Lily-May Symonds/BBC
Resilience Manager at the East of England Ambulance Service, Dave King, described the exercise as 'hugely important'

Participants in this exercise included Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, the East of England Ambulance Service, Hertfordshire Police, Hertfordshire County Council, Dacorum Borough Council, The British Red Cross, UK Disaster Victim Identification Team, and Hertfordshire colleagues from across the NHS.

Martin Kirk, head of corporate health safety and resilience at Dacorum Borough Council, said: "Exercises like this are invaluable in helping us strengthen our joint response, making sure we are prepared to deal with any emergency that may face us in the future."

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