Fallon Ambulance plays key role in Urban Shield drill; takes command role in evacuation and transfer in key Homeland Security drill

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Fallon Ambulance plays key role in Urban Shield training exercises; runs command role in hospital evacuation and patient transfer

BROOKLINE and QUINCY, MA, ISSUED May 13, 2014…Fallon Ambulance Service (www.fallonambulance.com) played a key role in the recent Urban Shield exercises conducted in and around Boston, taking the command role in the evacuation and patient transfer drills for Mass General Hospital and participating in several area SWAT drills.

Anyone in the greater Boston area who had not seen the advance media notification about the drill might have been taken by surprise in witnessing some of the activity around Mass General Hospital, and also by what appeared to be a fully-engaged SWAT operation at Crown Colony in Quincy, as well as in Cambridge and Brookline.

One of the SWAT scenarios was on the MIT campus in Cambridge, simulating a disgruntled employee of a business bringing a gun to work and shooting 10 people.  ‎The SWAT teams were tasked with securing areas within the building and escorting Fallon’s tactical medics in to find, assess, treat, and extricate the victims.  Injuries ranged from minor to serious gunshot wounds, to fatalities (DOAs).  

Fallon Ambulance dispatched eight of their thirteen Tactical Medics, who worked in two teams of four. One team ran the scenario with the Boston FBI SWAT team and Brookline Police SRT team. The other team ran the scenario with the Metropolitan Law Enforcement Council SWAT team and Quincy Police SWAT team.

All of the exercises in and around Greater Boston were part of a 24-hour drill put on by the Metro Boston Homeland Security (MBHSR), whose activities are supported with funding from the Department of Homeland Security through the Urban Areas Security Initiative grant program. Boston has been designated as one of the “highest threat” urban areas within the United States.

The UASI program focuses on enhancing regional preparedness in major metropolitan areas, and directly supports the national priority of expanding regional collaboration in the National Preparedness Guidelines.  The UASI program assists communities in building capabilities to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from threats or acts of terrorism.

Urban Shield Boston is a continuous 24-hour exercise, during which first responders are deployed to and rotated through various training scenarios. This is the largest exercise ever conducted in Boston to date, involving over 600 emergency responders from 50 agencies.

This exercise incorporated regional critical infrastructure, emergency operation centers, regional communication systems, equipment and assets, as well as personnel representing all aspects of emergency response including intelligence, law enforcement, Explosive Ordinance Disposal Units, Fire, and Emergency Medical Services.

Kevin Mont, Director of EMS Operations/Emergency Preparedness at Fallon Ambulance, said that Fallon played the lead EMS role at Mass General. They ran the EMS Command, Triage Section, and coordinated the EMS transportation of patients in the evacuation drill, which included moving 60 plus patients out of the hospital, as well as evacuating “patients” to other areas of the building. “For us, this at the core of what we do,” said Mont, who described the drill as a two-tiered exercise. The first part was the internal and lateral evacuation of patients performed by the hospital staff and the second portion which Fallon coordinated was the transportation of patients via ambulance to different area hospitals. In all, Fallon used 10 ambulances and had other private ambulances involved in the drill with them, in addition to Boston EMS. Mont mentioned that the exercise was a unique opportunity for Fallon to play the lead EMS role during an evacuation of a major Boston Hospital and to help coordinate the transportation of patients to 10 other hospitals involved in the drill. Fallon committed 27 of their professionals to participate in the exercise. He said, “The lessons learned were invaluable and will certainly help us plan for any future real life event.”

In nearby Quincy, there was a SWAT exercise where the assignment was to find a criminal on the loose, as well as an active shooter incident in Brookline. Fallon’s role there was to provide transport and treatment if one of the law enforcement personnel were to be injured in the exchange.

“We were engaged in communities where we provide 911 and also in a larger role in Boston,” said Mont, who added, “The importance of drills such as these cannot be overstated, particularly given what has happened in recent history with the Boston Marathon bombing.”

About Fallon Ambulance

Fallon Ambulance Service was founded in 1923 by James R. Fallon, Sr. Mr. Fallon’s son, James R. (Ray) Fallon, Jr., served as President and owner from 1974 until 2000. Today, Timothy J. Fallon, grandson to the founder, serves as President and CEO.  Tim’s sister Kathleen Mackie, step brothers, Peter Racicot, Senior Vice President and Normand Racicot, Vice President, also represent the third generation of this family business. And a fourth generation represented by 7 great grandchildren of the founder is working in various capacities in the organization. Fallon Ambulance is the largest privately owned and operated ambulance service in the Northeast. Fallon Ambulance employs more than 600 personnel, operates more than 150 vehicles and responds to over 160,000 emergency and non-emergency calls per year.  Fallon Ambulance is the 9-1-1 provider for the municipalities of Milton, Quincy, Brookline, Weymouth, Braintree and Dedham and provides primary backup to Boston. Fallon Ambulance Service additionally provides medical transportation for a number of area medical facilities including nursing homes, hospitals, and HMOs throughout Greater Boston, the South Shore and Metro West region. It is headquartered at 111-115 Brook Road, Quincy, MA and operates satellite offices throughout its coverage area. Fallon Ambulance Service has been recognized many times by various business and community organizations for its exceptional service.  For additional information about Fallon Ambulance Services or programs that the company offers, contact Peter Racicot, Senior Vice President, at (617) 745-2117 or visit www.fallonambulance.com.

Photo caption: A number of Fallon Ambulance professionals participated in the recent Urban Shield drills. Shown in the photo: Top row, left to right, Fallon Lieutenants Bobbie Arico, Jonathan Rzasa, and Brian Luongo; Cheryl Cowan, Captain; Christopher LaPorte, Deputy Supervisor; Shawn O’Brien, Lieutenant; Michael Grazioso, Lieutenant; and Chris Grazioso, Deputy Supervisor. Bottom row, left to right: EMTs Kimberlee McAndrews, Megan Donahue, and Patrick Ball.