Curaçao Red Cross participates in “Smoking Cockpit”

1 September 2006

It’s the 25th of August.
The time is 9.30 in the morning.
Suddenly, there is great panic in the departure lounge of the recently opened Curaçao International Airport - an explosion has rocked a just-arrived aircraft at gate 3. More than 100 waiting passengers are running out of the lounge.

Luckily, this was not reality but the start of the simulation exercise,” Smoking Cockpit” organized by the CAP (Curaçao Airport Partners) with the participation of government and public health services, the ambulance service, airport and other fire brigades and the local Red Cross.

The Red Cross involved over 150 students of a nearby school, who acted as travellers and victims of the explosion. The simulation was very realistic and required the aid workers to organize well and work together to assist over 25 severely and less severely injured “victims”, including two “deaths”.

The Red Cross arrived 35 minutes after the blast with 62 volunteers, six ambulances and other equipment. With only seven ambulances on the islands from the Curaçao Emergency Services, it is clear that Red Cross assistance in such disasters is essential.