Fire department and Colorado Springs responders practice together

  • Published
  • By Corey Dahl
  • 21st Space Wing Public Affairs
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. --  Members of the 21st Space Wing weren't the only ones participating in Peterson's massive Condor Crest exercise Aug 18-21.

On Aug. 20, Peterson's fire department worked with the El Paso County Sherriff's Office, the Colorado Springs Airport and the Colorado Springs Fire Department to conduct a joint nighttime exercise. All four agencies worked together to respond to a simulated mid-air collision that created two "crash" sites on the north end of the base.

While the agencies train and consult with each other on a regular basis, this was the first large-scale exercise they had collaborated on since May 2007, said Dave Reynolds, Peterson's assistant fire chief. Overall, the agencies did well, and anything that didn't work will be used as teaching points for the future, which is the purpose of these exercises, he said.

"We're all going to walk away better able to respond if something like this does happen," Mr. Reynolds said.

Regular joint exercises between the agencies are important not only to work out kinks but also to develop joint response procedures, Mr. Reynolds said. While emergency agencies all follow general safety and response codes, they can be interpreted in a variety of ways - leaving departments with drastically different guidelines and standard operating procedures.

"Exercises like this help us look at how to make our procedures work together, so when we respond to something like this, it goes smoothly," he said. "All our departments are efficient on their own, but by working together we make our operations better on both sides."

 

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