Ready for a disaster
<p>Lakeland High School students follow the process of decontamination in a drill taking place Tuesday afternoon.</p>
<p>Logan Moore, sophomore at Lakeland High, walks through the spray of water from the Northern Lakes Fire Protection District at the Rathdrum school. The agency utilized approximately 60 Lakeland High students during their training of a mass decontamination scenario.</p>
<p>After going through the warm zone, a location in which students were sprayed down with water, students were instructed to wear disposable overalls at a mass decontamination drill Tuesday at Lakeland High School in Rathdrum. The Northern Lakes Fire Department conducted the drill to simulate what needs to be done when chemicals are released into a ventilation system.</p>
<p>Students from Lakeland High wait in the "cold zone," or safe area, after being decontaminated during a drill by the fire department.</p>
<p>Joe Peavy, junior at Lakeland High, takes direction from fire fighter Justin Brodin.</p>
RATHDRUM - Ready for action. The Northern Lakes Fire Protection District held a mass decontamination drill at Lakeland High on Tuesday involving about 50 students.
"We want to be prepared, especially with schools by train tracks," said Jim Lyon, Northern Lakes spokesman. "This is for immediate responders, on-duty crews even before the regional hazardous materials team arrives."
The drill simulated a disgruntled student releasing a hazardous chemical into the ventilation system of the school. The incident affected multiple classrooms.
Fire district personnel and two fire engines responded and formed a corridor for decontamination. Water streams were delivered through a smaller hose line at the entrance. Heavier water flow came from larger water ports in the mid-section of the trucks.
"Contaminated" students exited the school and were instructed to remove outer clothing - they had T-shirts and shorts underneath - and place the items in containment bags.
The students were then instructed to walk through two water streams in small groups of two to three to wash contaminants from their bodies, rotating 360 degrees.
"In most contamination situations such as this, approximately 80 percent of contamination would be removed by shedding of outer clothing," Lyon said.
Upon exiting decontamination area, students were covered in disposable coveralls.
Lyon said the fire department appreciated the collaboration with the high school on the drill to make it as much like a real-life situation as possible.