CONSULTANT IN CRISIS

by Alison Roberts

  ‘I want to go inside,’ Kyle complained. ‘How much longer are we going to have to wait?’

  Fletch had been watching Kelly as her fingers twisted the sections of her hair. He turned towards Kyle and sounded irritated.

  ‘As long as it takes,’ he said.

  ‘It’ll be too soon for Pamela, however long it takes,’ Wendy told them. ‘She’s sitting in the front seat, crying. She says she’s not ready for this.’

  Jessica bit her lip. ‘I’m a bit scared, too,’ she admitted. ‘I never expected this.’

  ‘None of us did,’ Fletch said. ‘But we’re here now and we’re needed and we’re all capable of doing whatever they ask of us. We’re part of a team here. Nobody’s going to be on their own and there’s going to be people other than us in charge. We just need to follow instructions and do the best we can.’

  Everybody was listening, including Kelly. Leadership came so naturally to Fletch and he was so capable of encouraging people to do their best—even do better than they thought they were capable of. Kelly had seen him do it time and time again. She had always admired the calm way he had been able to take control of serious cases in Emergency. To pull a team together and keep them focused on whatever challenges they’d faced. Kelly hadn’t been the only person to have complete trust in his judgement or to respond to his words of praise. No wonder he was a consultant already.

  ‘I still can’t quite believe this.’ Jessica shook her head. ‘If this had happened last week, it could have been you guys trapped in there.’

  ‘I’d like to know what caused the explosion,’ Joe murmured.

  ‘I was going to come here today,’ Jessica mused. ‘There’s the best toy shop in town here and I promised I’d bring Ricky before we went home. And I wanted to try the pizza I missed out on last week.’

  ‘This is taking so long,’ Kyle muttered. ‘When are we going to get told something?’

  ‘Don’t be in too much of a hurry, Kyle.’

  ‘Yeah. Save your energy,’ Joe added. ‘I have a feeling that we’re going to be here a hell of lot longer.’

  Jessica caught Kelly’s eye. ‘Can I borrow your mobile phone, please? I’d better call the motel and let Mum know I’ll be late.’

  ‘If people are buried, we might be here for days,’ Roger observed. ‘Who knows?’

  ‘I can’t stay that long,’ Jessica said firmly. ‘I might not even be able to stay all night. I’ll have to see how my mother’s coping.’ She held the phone to her ear.

  ‘They’ll be calling in other USAR-trained personnel,’ Fletch told Jessica. ‘I’m sure they’ll be able to replace you before too long. I guess we were just the easiest group to activate quickly.’

  ‘And the most recently trained.’ Sandy looked nervous. ‘I hope I can remember everything we’ve learned.’

  ‘Other people will be more experienced,’ Kelly said.

  ‘How?’ Fletch raised an eyebrow. ‘When was the last incident like this that they could have gained experience from?’

  ‘There’s never been anything like this. Oh, look…’ Wendy pointed out of the window. ‘That TV crew is arguing with the police. They’re obviously not too happy about being told to go away.’

  ‘And here comes Dave.’ Fletch was looking past the altercation.

  Jessica closed the phone and handed it back to Kelly. ‘There’s no answer from our motel unit,’ she said anxiously. ‘I’ll have to try again later.’

  ‘There’s going to be a formal briefing in the tent that’s just gone up beside the triage area,’ Dave announced as he stepped up into the bus. ‘It should start in ten minutes. Extra USAR team members are arriving and we’ll split you up into teams as soon as we have a better idea of numbers. You can expect to get specific instructions and to start operations as soon as the formal briefing is over.’

  ‘What do you know so far?’ Fletch queried.

  ‘This is big,’ Dave said soberly. ‘Huge. A massive explosion occurred at about 3.30 p.m. in the central mall. It’s brought part of at least three shops down into the supermarket area.’

  Kelly checked her watch. That had been nearly three hours ago. ‘How many people are involved?’

  ‘At last count there were seventy-six people reported missing but there are calls from all over town to the helpline. Anyone who can’t find someone is ringing to suggest they might have gone shopping. The mall was crowded. There could be a lot of children still in there.’

  ‘Oh, God.’ The sentiment was collective. Nobody wanted to think about having to rescue children.

  ‘Let’s get moving.’ Dave cut off the buzz of reaction. ‘You’ll hear everything I know at the briefing.’

  Kelly’s group mingled with dozens of other people in the tent. Various uniforms indicated the origins of some teams such as the army and police. New people wearing USAR overalls joined the class, taking their numbers well above twenty. They greeted Dave and Tony and talked to everyone nearby, finding out what they could in advance. It took some minutes for silence to finally fall as the group on a makeshift platform called for everybody’s attention.

  ‘My name is Terence Drake.’ A microphone was not necessary. Kelly was not the only person listening intently and the silence was complete. ‘I’m the scene commander here at present. It’s my job to give you the most up-to-date information we have and an overall picture of the size of this incident. You will report to your individual team leaders for operational instructions.’

  An overhead projector was being used to display an image onto the canvas walls behind the podium. A map of the mall and surrounding streets was shown. The red dot of the laser pointer Terence Drake held circled the central area of the map.

  ‘At 1538 hours this afternoon a large explosion occurred within the EatFresh Supermarket. This caused a structural collapse affecting a wide area, including these shops on the second storey.’ The red dot paused on a fashion store, a hair salon and then a café. ‘As far as we can tell, what remains of these stores is now in the supermarket area.

  ‘The areas immediately surrounding the worst affected area are deemed structurally unsafe and are, as yet, unable to be accessed. This affects a further ten stores, although some appear outwardly undamaged.’

  The dot moved to a new area of the map. ‘The basement car parking area is also deemed unsafe and cannot be entered at this point. Engineering experts and support teams are currently assessing the damage and starting the process of making these areas safe for rescue personnel to access.’

  Terence put down the laser pointer. ‘Major evacuation procedures were put into effect immediately. The mall was crowded due to it being just after school hours on a Friday. Emergency services were on the scene within five minutes. The fire on the south side of the mall has been contained and the utilities of power, water and gas have been isolated.’

  Dave Stewart was nodding. He had already received this information.

  ‘Walking casualties have now either been evacuated or made their own way from the main area of the mall. However, we know there are uninjured people trapped in one of the lifts and in upstairs areas unable to gain access to a stairwell or fire escape. The fire service has just gained access to the second storey on the north side of the mall and they have started evacuation.’

  Another figure moved forward. ‘So far we have one hundred and four casualties, twelve seriously injured victims and three fatalities. People reported missing at present total around sixty but this figure is dropping as hospital admission lists are published. We have a lot of parents still panicking about the whereabouts of their children.’

  Jessica caught Kelly’s eye. Her expression conveyed empathy for those parents.

  ‘Barriers to the operational area are being strictly enforced.’ The scene commander took over speaking again. ‘You are all reminded to follow the instructions of your team leaders and remain within the delegated areas for your assigned tasks. Ensure that protocols for safety are upheld at all times. One of my priorities is
to avoid adding to the number of victims this disaster has already claimed.’

  Kelly followed her team back towards the bus when the briefing was over. Another bus was parked beside theirs now and a canvas awning covered the space between the vehicles. People Kelly didn’t recognise were arranging desks and portable lights within the covered space. A large whiteboard was propped against the side of one bus.

  ‘You’ll be working in four-to six-hour shifts,’ Dave informed them. ‘Accommodation is being set up in a church hall just out of the main car park on Sutherland Street. The mall has been divided into six sectors and we’ll have enough personnel to put a team into each sector. The team will consist of a squad leader, five rescuers and one or two medics. Team lists will be put on the board shortly and each team will be briefed separately by their operations officer.’

  Dave was looking at Fletch. ‘I’d like to introduce Dr Neil Fletcher to those of you who haven’t met him. Fletch is an emergency department consultant. I’ve arranged for him to liaise with hospital and ambulance service managers to put together the kits the medics will carry. We’ll have a briefing for medics after the teams have been sorted. Fletch, take Kelly with you and report to the scene command unit. That’s the big grey truck close to the triage tent. They’re expecting you and should have some supplies ready. We’ll catch you up with anything you need to know after you get back.’

  Kelly had to trot to match Fletch’s long stride. He slowed fractionally.

  ‘What supplies should we carry, do you think?’ He seemed to be thinking aloud. ‘We can’t manage more than a bum bag or a small backpack.’

  ‘OP airways,’ Kelly suggested. ‘IV supplies. Saline. Morphine.’

  ‘We’ll need metaclopromide and Narcan as well, then, to handle any side effects.’

  ‘Splints.’ Kelly could see a woman being helped into an ambulance. One side of her face and a shoulder were red and blistered. ‘Burn dressings,’ she added.

  ‘The first-aid supplies can go in the Stokes baskets,’ Fletch said. ‘I’m talking about what we carry while we’re searching.’

  ‘Stethoscope and BP cuff,’ Kelly suggested. ‘We won’t know how much we’ll need until we can assess them properly.’

  ‘We need to minimise gear to deal with life-threatening situations. We don’t need to carry a sphygmomanometer to estimate blood pressure.’

  ‘All right, then. We’ll need intubation gear and an ambu-bag.’ Kelly wondered how many more of her suggestions would fail to find approval.

  ‘I suppose you’d like to carry a defibrillator around with you as well?’

  ‘I don’t know why you’re bothering to ask my opinion,’ Kelly snapped. ‘Why don’t you just decide what you want and get on with it.’

  ‘That kind of autocratic behaviour might be your way of dealing with things, Kelly. It’s not mine.’

  ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ Kelly could see the scene command unit they were heading for.

  ‘I’m talking about your ability to make a decision and follow through without having the decency to even communicate with the people it’s going to affect. Hardly the attitude for a team player, is it?’

  ‘We’d better hope we’re not on the same team, then, hadn’t we?’ Kelly pressed her lips together. Right now was not an appropriate time to delve into personal history. ‘I don’t think you’ll find your attitude shared by others.’

  ‘That’s probably because they don’t know you as well as I do. What do you think Dave or Ross or Joe would say if they knew you were capable of dumping someone just because they got sick?’

  ‘Sick!’ Kelly gave Fletch an amazed stare. Then she snorted. ‘I suppose that’s one word for it.’

  ‘What word would you choose?’

  ‘Diagnostic,’ Kelly snapped. ‘Or revealing, maybe. There are a few things people don’t know about you, too, Neil Fletcher.’

  Fletch paused abruptly and Kelly almost bumped into him. ‘I would prefer to keep it that way, thanks.’

  ‘I’m sure you would,’ Kelly said angrily. ‘And you can keep your opinions of me to yourself. You’ve got no right to complain about any lack of communication. It’s not as if you bothered at the time, is it? You didn’t try and find me. You didn’t even have the decency to apologise.’ Kelly knew they should not be having this conversation. Why on earth had Fletch picked this particular moment to start dragging skeletons out of the closet?

  ‘Apologise! You’ve got to be joking.’ Fletch was staring at Kelly with total disbelief. ‘Apologise for what, precisely?’

  ‘As if you didn’t know.’ Kelly shook her head. ‘Oh, come on, Fletch.’

  ‘Are you Neil Fletcher?’ The voice cut through the arctic stare they were both locked into. ‘We’re waiting for you. The ambulance service has just unloaded supplies for the USAR medics to carry.’

  Fletch turned away, dismissing the interaction with Kelly. Heaven knew why he’d risen to the bait like that. Maybe the tension of the situation was responsible. He had known it would be a pointless exercise. The nerve of the woman. He had been the injured party as far as their relationship was concerned. If anybody needed to apologise, it certainly wasn’t him. Kelly was right. They’d better hope they weren’t working on the same team.

  The team lists were on the whiteboard by the time Fletch and Kelly returned to the USAR base. They would be deployed as and where needed within the six designated sectors of the incident area. Two of the teams were made up of mostly qualified people who had previously trained and practised together. The majority of the newly qualified class had been split amongst the remaining four teams. The squad leader for USAR 3 was Tony Calder. June was included amongst the rescuers and the medics were Joe and Jessica. Ross and Wendy were the medics for USAR 4 and Kyle was one of the rescuers on that team. USAR 5 was being led by Dave Stewart. Fire officers Owen and Roger were rescuers and the medics were listed as Fletch…and Kelly.

  They’d have to organise a swap, Kelly decided. She could work with Joe or Ross, and Jessica or Wendy could be in Fletch’s team. She would have a word with Dave as soon as the medics’ briefing was over. As Kelly packed the supplies into her bum bag she glanced up frequently, trying to locate her squad leader, but when she eventually approached Dave he was busy issuing gear and instructions.

  ‘Check your headlamps. There’s no light at all inside yet. USAR 3, you’re going to sector 6 with Tony in about ten minutes. Check your radio frequencies and test them. USAR 5, we’re going in now. Sector 3 has been cleared by the engineers as safe to search. Roger, do up your helmet strap. Kelly, get your heavy gloves on. Are you all ready?’

  The series of nods was the signal Dave was waiting for. He led his small team towards the barriers blocking the mall entrance.

  There was no way to swap teams now. Kelly walked between Owen and Fletch. If she was really honest with herself, Kelly didn’t want to be on another team, anyway. The prospect of entering the mall was suddenly terrifying. And if she had to do something this demanding and dangerous, most people would consider Neil Fletcher to be the best person she could have at her side. She had no trouble dismissing the errant doubt as to whether Fletch could be trusted to use his considerable skills with the utmost professionalism. Kelly was quite confident that personal antagonism would have no impact on Fletch’s integrity. She knew that if she needed guidance or protection they would be hers without request as long as Fletch was capable of providing them.

  The huge sliding glass doors of the mall entrance had been shattered. Kelly could feel the crunch of glass under her boots as she squared her shoulders and followed Fletch through the dark, gaping hole that had to be entered. Yes. She could trust Fletch as a partner in whatever horrors they might be about to face.

  It was just such a shame that she knew the risk of trusting this man any further than that.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  NO TRAINING course could have prepared them for this.

  The half-demolished house and even the mountain
of rubble at the hardfill tip had been toys by comparison. This was real and the initial impression of relative normality only served to give the journey the quality of stepping further into a nightmare.

  They had eaten at this pizza restaurant only a week ago. Through the shattered glass frontage Kelly could see overturned chairs in the dim interior, abandoned meals on the tables, a leather jacket, a woman’s handbag and a child’s toy lying beside a deserted push-chair. The fear had been enough to force people into a panicked escape that had left no time to gather precious personal possessions. The toy was a tired-looking stuffed rabbit. Would the child be missing it by now? Unable to sleep because of the loss? Kelly could imagine the noise of the explosion, the mother scooping up her child and fleeing in terror…the screams of distraught and injured people.

  The lights from eight headlamps cast beams that moved as the team turned their heads, absorbing information from their surroundings. They became spotlights, picking out small pieces that were building into a jigsaw scene of overwhelming magnitude. A gift kiosk in the middle of the wide, tiled walkway had been overturned. Had the explosion been forceful enough to do that or had the structure been in the way of too many people trying to escape? Artificial flowers lay scattered amongst shards of broken pottery. A puddle of blood had been stepped in repeatedly, leaving skid marks and footprints that showed up in stark contrast to the pale tiled flooring.

  It took a minute or two for Kelly to make sense of the sounds she was hearing. Visual impressions became more muted as she concentrated on the voices around her.

  ‘Remember to stay alert at all times for indications of secondary collapse,’ Dave was reminding them. ‘Watch for columns and walls out of plumb, sagging ceilings or water seepage. Feel any vibration or movement and listen for creaking or rumbling noises.’

  There were noises everywhere. Sounds of heavy machinery and cutting equipment being moved or used at a distance. The crackle and buzz of the radio communication gear as people kept in touch with their teams. The USAR team was not alone inside the mall. The partially damaged areas on the outskirts had been searched already and were now being reassessed. Army personnel were clearing some of the debris from the walkways to facilitate entry and to provide a clearer escape route should it be needed. The gift kiosk was being dismantled and removed.