Trav's Travels: MCI

I waited to post this for a while because shortly after I wrote this blog, we did have a casualty incident, and I didn't think it would be tasteful to post it so soon afterwards

11/29/18

It was a super beautiful day, so after work I took one of the fat-tire bikes and biked out to Willy Field, a total round trip of 18 miles. The snow road was well-packed, so it felt like being on pavement. Elisha spent the evening with her friends from Methven hanging out.

12/1/18
Woke up to fresh snow in the morning to start December off

Because a mass casualty event (car accident with multiple people injured, plane crash, etc) would completely overwhelm the EMT and medical staff, you can volunteer to be on the MCI (mass casualty incident) team. For those without medical experience, they take shuttle drivers, stretcher bearers, recorders, and others. For those with medical experience or WFR training, you can even be part of the medical staff. And a good chunk of us also sign up to be part of the walking blood bank (they would draw blood from us at the time to help someone else). In the past I have been a stretcher bearer. This year, with my WFR certification, I could have been on the medical team, but since I'm on the SAR team already I decided not to be on the MCI team. However, I did volunteer to be a victim for the yearly practice run, as did Elisha. The fake incident was we were all in a van, driven by me, that ran into a truck on the Scott Base pass. The truck rolled down the cliff, and we all sustained various injuries. Elisha had a badly sprained, perhaps broken ankle. I had a collapsed lung as well as internal bleeding of my liver. So I was in bad shape! I was put on a stretcher and into the ambulance and straight to medical. They inserted a valve into my lungs and gave me oxygen and IVs. They also activated the walking blood bank and gave me blood for my internal bleeding. I of course would have been med-evac'd to Christchurch as soon as possible. It was a fun event to be involved in. We got to act and then see how the whole process would work. They did have me hooked up for vital signs (for real) and were very impressed by my low hear rate. The doc and PA said I must be in good shape.

Because the weather was so super nice, Elisha and I biked out on the Willy Field Road out the LDB turn off. Such a nice night with no wind and strong sun. We were definitely sweaty. In the evening we went to a decades dance party at gallaghers.

12/2/18

As the weather was absolutely gorgeous, we went out for a bike ride on the cape armitage loop with some of our other outdoor friends (Amy, Martin, and Eddie). Well, actually a modified bike ride. I biked and Elisha skate skied, but she got a little help because I tied a rope around my bike and she held on to it waterski style while I biked and she lazily skated. It was a perfect combo! We're thinking we might do that for the marathon. The weather was so warm! We were sweating and biking without layers and gloves.

In the early evening I worked on some stuff for my paper, then we met up with our friends again to play catchphrase at the coffeehouse. We then attended the science lecture, which was very interesting. It was given by a group who has a robot that they want to pilot under the icecaps of one of Jupiter's moons (Europa), so they are testing it here, under the ice shelves and floating glaciers. The lead investigator in an astrobiologist. How cool is that!?

12/3/18
My other boss Nate arrived today as Laura is set to leave tomorrow to go back home. I'll definitely miss her!
Last bike ride out on the Cape Armitage loop before heading to the deep South