Remarks made by Quincy Volunteer Fire Department Chief Frank Carey were eye-opening in response to the recent Quincy Jr. Sr. High School active shooter response exercise. Carey saying Plumas County is “not immune” to these types of situations seen weekly across the country.
Plumas Public Health pulled together many of the county’s emergency response units, which spanned from the Sheriff’s office, CHP, Fish and Wildlife, EMS, Care Flight, and Fire departments.
The exercise involved scenarios of an active shooter on campus with real-time response practice. Members from the various emergency responding units were compelled to coordinate their efforts and work cohesively to de-escalate the situation and rescue victims, roles played by Quincy Jr. Sr. High students and staff.
Sam Blessing, EMS manager for Care Flight, emphasized the need for these exercises to take place more often and highlighted that there were areas in need of improvement, but that was the purpose and success of the exercise.
Plumas Public Health Agency’s Lori Beatly confirmed that more exercises will begin circulating throughout other county schools as wanted or requested. She shared that based on the lessons learned and performance outcomes, there will be an improvement plan drafted within six months outlining the targeted areas that need attention, from communication to triage.
The supervisors who were briefed on the exercise this week thanked those involved and Lori for coordinating the exercise. Supervisor chairperson Greg Hagwood echoed Sam Blessing’s sentiment, adding that he “prays to God we never experience anything like that” at any school but was grateful for the experience.
