By Robin Young
Special to The PREVIEW
If you went by the CSU Extension office the weekend before last, you probably saw what looked like an avalanche recovery effort by emergency responders. Well, you would be right.
Twelve youth from Archuleta County participated in the MyPI (My Preparedness Initiative) Disaster Training in a partnership with CSU Extension, the Archuleta County Office of Emergency Management, the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office, Pagosa Fire Protection District and Pagosa Springs Medical Center EMS.
These youth were trained in fire safety, disaster medical operations, CPR and AED training, search and rescue, disaster psychology, terrorism and emergency management organization. The participants spent an intense 21 hours of training over two days that included the disaster simulation of finding buried victims in an avalanche. This was also an opportunity for them to explore career tracks in emergency management, whether it’s as a firefighter, in law enforcement or in medical services.
The 12 youth will continue the education in our community by working with seven families to help them prepare an emergency supply kit and a family emergency communication plan. This is the final component for each student to complete in order to graduate from the program.
