Crime & Safety
Fire Department Simulates Mountainside Rescue at VCMS
The training is important this time of year, the chief said.
The floodlights lit up a section of the Vernon Center Middle School campus on Monday night and the Vernon Fire Department went to work.
The ladder was put into position, the ropes were lowered, the victim was secured and taken to safety, where he was promptly checked for injuries.
It was all part of a simulated mountainside rescue exercise.
Fire Chief William Call said the department gets about three serious rescue calls in mountain conditions each year, but as the weather gets warmer, more hikers and mountain bike enthusiasts come out to play, particularly at Valley Falls Park.
That increases the chances for one of those calls, the chief said.
The steep descent there and rugged terrain can make biking treacherous. Hikers can also slip and fall there, Call said.
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