Mock emergency drill to simulate C130 plane crash at the Tahoe Valley Airport

A large scale disaster is about to hit South Lake Tahoe. Sirens are blaring, emergency personnel are responding to the airport, screaming people are seriously injured while others cannot be saved, a triage is set up and an incident command center has been set up in the City Council chambers. A large airplane has just crashed with hazardous cargo on board at the Tahoe Valley airport.

Premonition? No. It's a planned emergency drill that will take place on Monday, August 25.

South Lake Tahoe Fire Chief Jeff Meston laid out the plans Wednesday for the lifelike drill that is required by the FAA.

He stood in front of a demonstration of the event, meticulously created to scale with Legos by SLTFD Captain (and Lego afficionado) Mark WyGant, as drill creator and coordinator Paul Bias of the fire department explained what to expect on the 25th.

The drill will involve people from law enforcement, fire and ambulance services, helicopters, corrections department and Hazmat as well as all City staff, Barton Hospital and the Red Cross. California Conservation Corps will provide the 45 patients.

The State of California created the Incident Command Center system in 1970 which enabled communities to put in a plan that resembled all others in the state. Now commonplace in the county, the U.S. government will reimburse cities that are involved in emergencies only if they use the IC system.

The last time a large scale emergency center was activated in the community was during 2007's Angora Fire. Meston and Bias stated how everyone needs to keep in practice so they'll know what to do in the case of a real emergency.

A statewide triage system will be tested during the drill. Bar coded colored Triage Tags will be placed on all of the acting patients. Patients will be placed according to the color responders placed on them, from minor injuries to fatalities. The bar codes become useful in emergencies as they'll track patients who have been transported to other cities. The Red Cross will be setting up a mock shelter at the recreation center and they will take some patients as well. They play a big role in emergencies to act as the communication liaison between families and the government.

Local media from South Tahoe Now, Lake Tahoe News and Tahoe Daily Tribune are being asked to inform the public about what will be happening at the airport so people won't panic and think a real emergency is going on. August 25 happens to be the first day of school for Lake Tahoe Unified so parents need to know all of the ambulances, police cars and fire department vehicles racing through town are all part of the planned drill.