News

N.Y. Town Holds Emergency Responder Day

Alan Rizzo

08/07/2015

Aug. 07--NORWOOD -- Village residents got a glimpse into the working lives of local police and emergency responders Thursday at the second annual Emergency Response Day at Norwood Beach.

The day featured a variety of activities hosted by the Norwood Police Department, Norwood Volunteer Fire Department and Potsdam Volunteer Rescue Squad, including demonstrations on how an arrest is made, tours of emergency vehicles, and a vehicle extrication demonstration in which members of Norwood Fire cut apart a Chrysler Cirrus with the Jaws of Life and other tools.

Event Coordinator Joshua T. Eng, an emergency medical technician with the Potsdam Volunteer Rescue Squad and head lifeguard at Norwood Beach, said the event is a way to introduce local families, especially those with children, to emergency responders and their equipment.

"It's just so they get familiarized with the ambulance, and the police car, and the fire truck, and that if they ever needed one of these emergency agencies in real life they wouldn't be so scared in the future," he said.

Norwood Volunteer Fire Department Warden Timothy M. James, who led the nine-member extrication crew Thursday, said it's important that children see the sights and sounds of an emergency situation, and understand the danger involved.

"That way, if they're in a car accident, it gives them a little bit of an idea of what we have to do," he said.

Mr. Eng said the event is also important as a recruiting tool for local emergency agencies, which are mostly in the area are volunteer based.

"We're always looking for new volunteers," he said. "Maybe in the next five to 10 years, when these kids get older, they might be interested in joining one of these agencies."

Potsdam Rescue EMT Daniel A. Eng, who played the role of the victim in the extrication, said while demonstrations like the extrication may be nerve-wracking, they help put emergency personnel in the shoes of victims.

"It's a different viewpoint," he said while strapped to a backboard in the back of an ambulance. "It's nice to know what the patient, what the person in the car would experience."

Potsdam Rescue Chief Timothy A. Rivers, who sat next to him, agreed, calling the experience comparable to his agency's requirement that staff first ride in the back of an ambulance at 60 mph before they take the wheel.

"It makes you realize that's what you're going to feel with patients back here," he said. "It's the same thing in the extrication training; put them in the spot of the patient. What you feel is what they feel, except they're probably 10 times as scared because it's not practice."

Donating to this year's Emergency Response Day were Butch's Auto, Norfolk, which provided the car for the extrication, and Stewart's Shops, which provided ice cream, toppings, and supplies for visitors, according to Mr. Eng.