How would emergency services respond if there was a hazardous materials spill in Summit County? What about mass injuries in the Snyderville Basin? Or a suspected explosive device discovered in the Park City area?While these scenarios are unlikely to happen all at once, first responders on Tuesday participated in a full-scale training exercise to ensure they’re prepared in the event of an emergency.Summit County Communications Director Derek Siddoway said more than 200 people from agencies such as the Park City Police Department and Summit County Sheriff’s Office, Park City Fire District and North Summit Fire District, the National Guard, Utah Highway Patrol, Intermountain Park City Hospital staff and more participated in the exercise.The drill started at Canyons Village when a bus of high schoolers on a field trip was impacted by a “dirty bomb.” The fake explosion caused many of the students, who were participating in the drama program, to become injured and potentially exposed to radiation.Firefighters and emergency medical technicians quickly triaged patients and identified who had the most severe injuries so they could receive immediate care. They also provided comforting words and support to those in distress.Park City High School drama students were enlisted in the mock disaster that took place in the Canyons Village parking lot on Tuesday. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park RecordFirst, students were either placed on a gurney and carried across a makeshift conveyor or walked across a tarp in a decontamination corridor. A baseline radiation reading was performed to check each individual. Then they were washed with a solution before being tested again. Once clear, the person was allowed to go to the ambulance.Hospital staff were ready for patient intake, and an emergency operations center was also established at the police department. A mock press conference with Siddoway, Sheriff Frank Smith, Summit County Health Director Phil Bondurant and others was hosted after the drill.Firefighters, police officers, sheriff’s deputies and state officials coordinated their response and interacted with each other throughout the activity. Yet it was also an opportunity for each agency to practice the skills they wanted to hone in on. Local first responders carry a Park City High School drama student towards ambulances as part of the mock emergency exercise Tuesday. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park RecordFor example, Park City Fire only recently started implementing the conveyor belt system as a way to transport patients more efficiently. Community members were notified the exercise, which ran from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., would create an increased presence of police and other first responders. Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Skyler Talbot reminded the public “this is solely a training exercise aimed at enhancing preparedness for real emergencies.”Park City’s location in a box canyon — meaning it’s enclosed on all sides by steep walls and has limited entrance and exit access — provides an added challenge for emergency planners. They’ve said it’s crucial for plans to be flexible, scalable and adaptable.Visit SummitCountyAlerts.org to sign up for notifications about emergencies and other information in Park City and surrounding Summit County.The post Summit County first responders train for emergency preparedness appeared first on Park Record.