Firefighters are tackling a catastrophic earthquake that has threatened to devastate the Liverpool region.
Spectacular scenes unfolded as 100 firefighters, 23 fire engines, five helicopters and seven Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams from across the country are turned out to deal with the incident.
Fortunately however, the disaster is staged as part of a national tactical exercise aimed to test the UK’s response to a catastrophic earthquake that simultaneously hits several parts of the country.
Over a 48-hour period, Exercise Orion will test emergency services in a way they have never been tested before, as a series of incidents develop in the south of England and Merseyside.
A huge pile-up in the Birkenhead Tunnel involving over 40 vehicles and a disastrous scene on an urban street in Croxteth with collapsed structures, building fires and numerous people trapped, will test the capabilities of Merseyside firefighters.
Dramatic searches for missing people, firefighting and rescues from cars and collapsed buildings will recreate a realistic disaster scenario. Real-life casualties will add to the drama, with members of staff from Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service, actors and volunteers from amputees in action, all taking part in the exercise.
People will also be rescued from a high-rise structure in Croxteth by an RAF Sea King helicopter and a Chinook helicopter will fly in a USAR pod, carrying specialist equipment, to help crews deal with the major incidents.
The Chinook will bring USAR teams from Wales and West Midlands to join up with the Merseyside crews and teams from West Yorkshire, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Tyne & Wear and Hereford & Worcester will also provide specialist support to the emergency services at the two incidents. MF&RS’ search and rescue dogs will also be involved in the exercise to find casualties from the wreckages.
The urban street in Croxteth has been created at Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s Training and Development Academy and a disused spur of the Birkenhead Tunnel will be used for the pile-up scenario. Fire crews are unaware of the extent of the exercise as it aims to test capabilities and resilience for a large-scale natural disaster.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s Assistant Chief Fire Officer Dan Stephens said: “The scale of the exercise makes it wholly unique in the way that it will test the resilience of our fire crews and we want to ensure the scenario is as realistic as possible, with the inclusion of multi-agencies, USAR teams from across the country and even five make-up artists to work on the casualties to create a greater sense of realism for the crews involved.”
Dave, Croxteth around 1 year, 5 months ago