Disaster drills provide hospital, community training

At 9 a.m. Thursday, an announcement echoed through the hallways at Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital: “Active shooter on campus. Up to 30 casualties.”

Fortunately, it was just a drill.

The scenario was that an armed suspect had entered a chemistry classroom at Iowa Western Community College and fired shots, wounding many of those in the room. In the chaos, formaldehyde was spilled, splashing on some of the students. A total of 28 “victims” were taken to the hospital.

Daily Nonpareil: Jennie Ed disaster drill highlights preparedness training