Story and photos by Kate Walters, American Red Cross Public Affairs Volunteer
What would you do if you were a Disaster Action Team (DAT) member on call and a huge fire broke out at an apartment complex?
The Southeastern Colorado chapter (SECO) of the American Red Cross hosted a Multi-Family DAT response training exercise last month. Thirty attendees from four different chapters participated.
The scenario: An explosion damages some units in an apartment complex. A DAT team is called in and discovers that all the units in the affected wing have been evacuated. The situation escalates.
Cora Davis, SECO DAT Co-lead, says, “We’re lucky to have a very strong DAT team, but we don’t have a lot of multi-family fires in our area, so this is how we prepare.”
Attendees learned what to expect during an actual response by working through mock situations: a displaced mother needing formula for her baby, an unaccompanied minor awaiting her family, and a diabetic woman requiring her medicine within four hours.
“It was great to work together with all my DAT teammates today.” Said Nancy Verde, “I still don’t know everything, but I feel much more prepared to go out to an apartment scene and help all the people.”