Disaster University: Philly's new EMS training for mass incidents

Inside Philly's Disaster University: New EMS training for mass incidents

The city is gearing up for a summer filled with events, culminating in the celebration of America's 250th birthday on July 4. The Philadelphia Fire Department is taking proactive steps to ensure safety by launching a new training facility called "Disaster University." 

PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Fire Department is taking proactive steps to ensure safety by launching a new training facility called "Disaster University." 

Philadelphia's new training initiative 

What we know:

Disaster University offers high-fidelity immersive training for EMS providers, combining classroom learning with real-world scenarios. 

This includes staged disaster scenes like car crashes and chemical hazards. 

"In that situation your traditional kind of deployment where you find one person and you take care of them completely no longer applies," said Captain William Murphy, Fire Paramedic Captain, Philadelphia Fire Department. "You have to apply mass casualty and triage rules." 

The facility opened in Kensington in October after the fire department seized the opportunity when a warehouse became available. 

"This was really thinking outside the box, an alternative way to provide training," said Commissioner Jeffrey Thompson, Philadelphia Fire Department. 

Local perspective:

More than 400 EMS providers have already trained at Disaster University, with plans to include firefighters in the spring. 

The facility is also being used by other agencies across the region. 

However, it will not replace the standard training at the academy. 

What we don't know:

Details on the specific high-profile events planned for the summer and how the training will be integrated into these events remain unclear.