Airport Tests out Emergency Services

Newman's emergency services were put to the test during “exercise overload” a fortnight ago.

More than 40 residents volunteered their time to be casualties in a simulated Boeing 737-800 accident at Newman Airport.

Shire of East Pilbara chief executive Allen Cooper said the exercise was held to test local response agencies’ capacity for dealing with the big number of casualties involved in an air crash.

A full field exercise must be conducted once every two years as a requirement of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority regulations to develop and maintain an Aerodrome Emergency Plan.

Mr Cooper said the vast majority of scheduled flights in and out of the town now had a capacity of 170 seats, whereas in the past it was 100.

“Our initial conclusion is that we have demonstrated we can muster sufficient resources locally to stabilise the situation, identify casualties and deal with the immediate initial situation,” he said.

“There is always room for improvement, and the aim of such an exercise is to identify any issues and improve on them.”

Mr Cooper said the local community responded very well to the exercise. He paid special thanks to Newman Capricorn Girl Guides and the Lions Club.