Chapter 99

0230 Tuesday Morning 24 January Robert

There is a banging on our door, K is awake, it is Tim and I see it is 0230. I unlock the door and yell, come in. Tim in pants undershirt and socks stops and says, Sir, we have an emergency The Albany Medical Center contacted us Four minutes ago to report that they have had a partial roof collapse and need to evacuate patients, especially ICU, CCU, and NICU. They also need our Search and Rescue with heavy equipment and labor.

Snow was still falling at about an inch an hour and the air temperature was -1 with a Twenty-Five MPH Wind with gusts to Forty MPH. Only the roads we have cleared are passable.

My mind goes into command mode. Send the Patrol that returned at 0200 with the 0300 Patrol with Colonel Dr Samuel Jackson Lafayette as OIC his Sea Bee skills will come in handy. Wake up the 0100 and 0400 Patrols. First One fully operational sent to the hospital. The Second will be the 0300 Patrol. Have the patrol that is on off day stand by.

I want all Medical Bradlees and Strikers not with Patrols on their way to the Albany Medical Center. Send Perrysville Throe to the scene as our Medical Professional.

Send a news crew to give us visual references. We will send a Marine Battalion as Labor. Send Two Command Bradlees One for Samual for Rescue Operations Command and One for Perry for Patient and Medical Information and Operations. Staff meeting Ten Minutes. Let us dress and after you also finish dressing. Tim, you will call for an all-hands Staff Meating in the bunker large Conference Room.

I arrived at the Command Center and before anyone could call the Commanding General on Deck. I called keep your seats and keep working. We had a conference call between our Command Center, our Medical Center, and the Albany Medical Center Dr. Albert Sink talking about patient transfers. Albany sent a list of Thirty-One ICU, Twenty-Nine CCU, Ten NICU patients and Fourteen PICU. Martha said we could handle the ICU and CCU with little difficulty, but we had little space, equipment, and staff for NICU. She had turned the NICU/PICU area into our Hypothermia ICU.

Kariwase

If Albany provides the staff, specialty supplies, and incubators we could convert the emergency clinic in the Longhouse into a NICU. The Twelve Treatment rooms and Two Surgeries would provide space for Twenty-Four incubators and Two treatment rooms. As the Clinic is located over the garage and connected to the nursery area step-down rooms would be available. An Elevator goes from the garage level up to the Clinic space and on up to the Third floor and attic area.

Martha replied, it will work but you had better get moving to make it work. I will send over what NICU supplies, equipment, and staff I have. Dr. Sink, will you send your staff and equipment to us? He replied everything we can. Martha added we will send One of our Computer people to get a copy of your patient treatment program so we can read your charts. We use the same base program so records will be mostly compatible.

Tim called Samual, Perry, Two Patrols Units along with Four Hercules have just cleared the gate ETA to you Thirty Minutes. Marines, All spare Medical Transport vehicles, and a Third Patrol Unit Gate departure ETA Twenty Minutes.

K said Mrs. Ruth, “I” will see to the NICU set-up and use our Family and Longhouse Staff for labor if you will see to the Medical Center Operations, Mrs. Ruth agreed.

Kariwase continued

Calling my transport team who had my chariot ready I said shut it down we are heading up stairs as I headed to the elevator. Raleigh met me as we got off the elevator. I went over the plan. We would clear out and move all medical equipment not sized for children to our Medical Center. We would prepare to receive thru the garage our new guests. What conditions they would be in on arrival? Would the trained NICU staff arrive before, with, or after the little ones? I do not know but be flexible. Everyone got to work, and we moved everything to the garage. Just as we finished the dozen NICU Staff Wolverine Field, Wappinger Nation Medical Center had arrived. They had what equipment was available and under the guidance of Charge Nurse Jayland Pulman-Usher we set up what we had and stored the supplies they brought.

Samuel

I had persuaded Robert to remain at the Command Center and direct all operations from there. On arriving at the scene, I found Albany Fire and Rescue trying to organize things but were having extreme difficulties getting equipment and personnel to the area. I introduced myself to Battalion Chief Leeland Parks and invited him to use my Command Bradley. When he saw what I had brought he turned the command over to me. I introduced him to Perry who was with Dr. Sink arranging evacuations. A Captain whose name I did not know reported that the evacuation convoy and Marine Labor was Fifteen Minutes Out. Perry acknowledges him.

The question of how to transport the NICU patients came up as using the incubators inside the Bradelys was impractical for reasons of power and tying them down. As we thought on the problem One of our Medics a Sargent Greagory Falter unzipped his parka and started to put his gloves into the large pocket inside the parka the manufacturer designed for the glove storage. He asked the NICU charge nurse how big are these babies. Seeing his gloves, she said about the size of your gloves. She picked up a little one and it slipped right into the pocket. She said a patient would fit in each pocket and the hosts’ body heat would provide the warmth they needed. With Two IV bag hung from helmets, and the person carrying an Oxygen bottle with Two lines of it would do for transporting the little ones. Each evacuation Bradley would carry Two Adult patients or Four infant Ones with the incubators stowed on board. As soon as we loaded patients into a vehicle it would depart for Wolverine Field. On arrival they would unload and return for another load.