This morning around 8:00 am, Hughesville Volunteers loaded up on Engine 22 and reported to Naval Air Station Patuxent River to participate in a live fire multi-jurisdictional training evolution hosted by the Naval District Fire Department. Upon arrival Engine 22 was strategically placed on the base in staging until they were requested to respond to the scene.

The initial dispatch was for smoke in a building. Upon arrival of the first units from NDWFD, they discovered two aircraft were involved in a mid air collision. One of the aircraft was on fire outside of the building and a second aircraft was on fire and collided with a three story occupied barracks. After units on scene requested additional resources, Engine 22 responded in a staggered timing to simulate a more realistic response.

Upon arrival to the scene, Engine 22 was assigned to Rapid Intervention Team (RIT). A short time after establishing the RIT team, the crew split up and a portion of the crew reported to side Charlie, to assist with removal of victims. The second half of the crew remained as the RIT team.

The evolution lasted just over one hour. The evolution progressively changed and crews were met with various scenarios that would emulate a real event. Some of the progressions included but were not limited to a downed firefighter, partial building collapse from the aircraft striking the building and triage of multiple victims.

Members from Hughesville VFD learned a lot from the evolution and would like to thank NDWFD Pax River for the opportunity to participate in this training and look forward to building our relationship with allied departments. In total eight different departments from St. Marys County, Charles County, Calvert County and the Federal system participated.

Federal: Naval District Washington Fire Department Patuxent River

Charles County: Hughesville Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad Inc.

St. Mary's County: Mechanicsville Volunteer Fire Department
Second District Volunteer Fire Department
Bay District Volunteer Fire Department
Hollywood Volunteer Fire Department

Calvert County: Solomons Volunteer Fire Department
St. Leonard Volunteer Fire Department