Community Response Task Force, Wednesday Program

Posted by Ernest Hauser

Philippe will talk about C.R.T.F. and then introduce Chief Sean Conley from the Atascocita Volunteer Fire Department, who will talk about the Ambus. The Ambus will be parked out front and will be available for the membership to visit. The Ambus is a "hospital on wheels". It can accommodate up to 26 patients. The engine is so powerful that it served as a generator for a retirement home one time and has functioned as an emergency room when a hospital closed down. The bus is 40 feet long and 9 feet wide. It has been reconfigured with seats that convert to patient beds. The bus can hold up to 26 patients sitting or 12 lying down. The bed system was constructed separately so a mix of beds and seats can be used simultaneously. It is ideal for firefighters’ rehabilitation at large fire incidents. It made history this past summer by being the first AMBUS in the state of Texas to be deployed to a wildfire at Bastrop.

The bus is equipped with an oxygen delivery system for each bed and features carbon monoxide detectors as well as radiation detectors. Each time the bus deploys, it will be staffed with a medical strike team consisting of a strike team leader and three paramedics.The AMBUS is maintained by AVFD personnel and housed at AVFD Station 2 on Atascocita Road. It is the only AMBUS in the region at this time.

CRTF was formed in 2005 by the Humble Office of Emergency Management and several other agencies, including HAAM, Homewood Suites owner Philippe Cras and several churches after the Katrina /Rita hurricanes in the area.

“We quickly saw and were made aware of the need for instant help for citizens during disasters and not the promised 72-hour waiting period that government has promised before help will arrive,” said CRTF spokeswoman Carole Chambers. “Government does a wonderful job of getting aid out to people fast, [but] what the average citizen doesn’t realize is the work that goes on behind the scenes to make that aid happen. The Office of Emergency Management in Humble does an awesome job of getting help out to our citizens, but it takes volunteers and neighbors to do the real work.