Latest news with #DannyFreestone
Otago Daily Times
14-05-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Drill to prepare for threat of Alpine Fault rupture
NZ Army medics learn how to work in different environments during a training exercise in the Pisa Conservation Area. PHOTO: SUPPLIED Imagine the scenario. New Zealand's largest fault line, the Alpine Fault, has just ruptured in Central Otago's Pisa Conservation Area. A man, hypothermic and barely conscious after being found in a creek bed, is carried to a New Zealand Army medical detachment for treatment. While specialists begin treatment, others prepare a tent to stabilise the man before emergency services arrive. Luckily, this is only a training exercise conducted by about two dozen New Zealand Army medical personnel. The mountain rescue drill took place at the Snow Farm Nordic Ski Area. Perched high in the Pisa Range, the site was chosen for its remoteness and existing infrastructure. Though only a drill, it reflected a genuine threat, as scientists estimate a 75% chance of a magnitude 8.0 or stronger Alpine Fault quake within 50 years. Most participants were part-time Reserve Force medics with civilian experience alongside a small number of Regular Force personnel. In a statement, Deployable Health Organisation commanding officer Lieutenant-colonel Glen Whitton said alpine exercises offered a unique chance to adapt to altitude and isolation. "Medical training is normally focused on combat scenarios. "However, we assist in humanitarian and disaster relief in New Zealand and the Pacific. "The likelihood is we will be called on to respond potentially to humanitarian and disaster emergencies," he said. The teams, each made up of a commander, doctor, nurse and two medics, practised two response methods. One method used a mobile detachment that drove a New Zealand Army Pinzgauer vehicle to reach casualties quickly. They erected a portable 11m x 11m tent and delivered treatment under basic conditions. The second detachment used existing hard-standing buildings, operating from a remote alpine hut. Senior medic and training facilitator Sergeant Danny Freestone said the medical detachments were designed to triage and stabilise a patient on or near the location of their injury, giving them a higher rate of survival. "Once stabilised, ideally emergency services would extract them from the location to the nearest hospital." — APL
Otago Daily Times
24-04-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Medic unit train in Central for Alpine Fault scenario
Medics of the New Zealand Army's Deployable Health Unit as they adapt to the environment of the Pisa Conservation Area. PHOTO: SUPPLIED The scenario — the Alpine Fault, New Zealand's largest fault line running 600km along the South Island, has just ruptured. Found lying in a creek bed in Central Otago's Pisa Conservation Area, hypothermic and barely conscious, a man is carried to a nearby New Zealand Army medical detachment for treatment. Two medical specialists administer initial treatment, four prepare the 11m×11m tent where the man will be stabilised before emergency services arrive. While it may just be a training scenario for the 27 New Zealand Army Regular and Reserve Force doctors, nurses and medics from the Deployable Health Unit, scientists had predicted a 75% chance of a magnitude 8.0 or higher quake striking along the fault. The Snowfarm Nordic Ski Area was specifically selected for its infrastructure and remote environment. The majority of personnel attending the training recently were part-time Reserve Force medics, many of whom work or study in the medical field. Commanding Officer of the Deployable Health Organisation Lieutenant Colonel Glen Whitton said alpine training gave personnel a unique opportunity to adapt to working at altitude and in isolated areas. "Medical training is normally focused on combat scenarios. However, we assist in humanitarian and disaster relief in New Zealand and the Pacific. "The likelihood is we will be called on to respond potentially to humanitarian and disaster emergencies." The teams which consist of a commander, doctor, nurse and two medics practised in different ways to respond. One saw teams deployed as a mobile detachment where they would travel closer to casualties in a Pinzgauer vehicle. The teams would set up an 11m×11m tent where medical treatment was administered under basic conditions. The other detachment occupies hard standing buildings and in this case operated from a remote alpine hut. "The medical detachment is designed to triage and stabile a patient on or near the location of their injury, giving them a higher rate of survival. Once stabilised, ideally emergency services would extract them from the location to the nearest hospital," senior medic and training facilitator, Sergeant Danny Freestone said. — APL
