Mock plane crash drill set for Sonoma County airport

Emergency agencies from around Sonoma County and volunteer victims from area schools will be at the Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport Wednesday for a drill preparing for a plane crash.

The drill, from 10 a.m. to noon, will involve a simulated plane crash with 40-50 victims. Firefighters, paramedics, a hazardous materials team, law enforcement, dispatchers and two helicopters will coordinate how to respond to a crash with a large number of victims.

Such trainings are required by the Federal Aviation Administration every three years.

The airport, northwest of Santa Rosa, is within the Rincon Valley Fire Protection District boundaries. Rincon Valley fire and airport officials are coordinating the drill.

“Having a commercial airport in our jurisdiction is a big responsibility and the public at large should feel safe in knowing that their first responders know how to deal with an aircraft emergency, whatever the scale,” said Rincon Valley Fire Chief Mark Heine in a statement.

Volunteer victims include Windsor High School and Santa Rosa Junior College students. They'll be taken to Santa Rosa Memorial and Petaluma Valley hospitals to allow hospital staff to train for such a response.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 707-521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com.