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The Story Unfolds... Season Two, Episode Twelve.. Crossing The Red Line Debut Launch: 1 July 2004. ------------------- ****************************************************** From : Joan <chetspet@myway.com> Subject : [EmergencyTheaterLive] A Test Of Wills Sent : Saturday, July 3, 2004 1:05 AM The day was a typical day at Station 51. It was 2pm and they had had three runs, 2 rescues and 1 fire, none of which were bad, without any Code I’s. Even Johnny came away unscathed, so far.. Chet, as usual, had drawn latrine duty, for having sprung a water bomb on the Cap that was intended for Johnny. As he mopped the latrine, he grumbled to himself, “Man, how was I supposed to know the Cap was gonna open the cabinet before Gage? MAN!” Johnny and Roy were checking through their equipment to make sure all their supplies were in order, while Stoker was polishing ‘Big Red’. |
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Cap was in his office trying to catch up on some of his never-ending paperwork, while Marco was in the kitchen making his famous chili for dinner. The guys were all able to enjoy their dinner for once. Suddenly the klaxons sounded and it turned out to be a call for the whole station. “Station 51. Unknown rescue at the Carson City Hall. 534 East Carson Street. Cross Street Avalon. Time out 1803." While everyone ran to their assigned duties, Captain Stanley acknowledged, “10-4 Station 51 responding. Carson City Hall 534 East Carson Street. Cross Street Avalon. KMG 365.” And he then ran to the engine. The men arrived to find the mayor and his secretary waiting for them,while police and security guards were trying to keep people calm and away from the scene. Captain Stanley went up to the mayor and asked, “Mr. Mayor, I’m Captain Stanley of the fire department. What seems to be the trouble, sir?” “Well, Captain Stanley, the thing is I am not really sure. All I know is I was in my office dictating a memo to Linda, my secretary, here when this young man came running into my office yelling. I thought maybe he was a disgruntled citizen with a complaint of some kind, you know.” |
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Captain Stanley nodded and then introduced Roy and John as the paramedics, and said, “Go on with your story Mayor Johnson.” “Ok, well, as I said before, I thought that but it turned out he was yelling for help. Seems he was sick or something, cause within a minute or two, he passed right out on my floor and started foaming at the mouth. After a few seconds, he appeared to wake up and yelled at me, “Mayor Johnson, you need to tell everyone there is a wild rabid dog running out right outside this building. I was cleaning the back up and out of nowhere he attacked me!” After he said this, he again passed out, and is now lying in my office and hasn’t moved since he said that. I called you guys right away and I hope I’m not too late. I have the animal patrol searching for the dog now. Please go help him, but be careful of that dog. I have no idea where he could be.” Roy and John assured the Mayor they would attend to the stricken man immediately and Captain Stanley had his guys assist with the search, telling them all to be very careful. While John and Roy were upstairs, the animal control people had found and corralled the dog and put him down, as he was too far-gone to be helped. Their patient, although stable, had never regained consciousness and Rampart had ordered the dog’s body brought in as well; to be sure it was rabies and nothing else. With Roy in front and John in back, they began to transport the victim. While doing this, John’s foot became entwined with some loose carpeting in the stairwell and he tripped, losing the stretcher. As it was only three steps to go, Roy was able to safely put the patient down. |
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*********************************************************** From : Cassidy Meyers <killashandrarey@hotmail.com> Sent : Thursday, July 15, 2004 9:11 PM Subject : The Unknown Factor Johnny watched Roy depart, wheeling the stretcher out into the large lobby of city hall to where he could see the gang milling about outside with the Mayor through the paned glass windows. The ambulance attendants who had been outside cleared a path through the crowd of onlookers and took over the fair haired paramedic's stretcher and the big Mayfair angled on the curb was quickly loaded up. Immediately, Johnny saw Cap nod a few seconds after Roy shouted something to him. At an order, Marco and Chet ran off to grab the splint box out of the squad. He almost blushed in embarrassment when he saw Cap plaster a face against the doors to see how he was doing. Seconds later, he saw Mayor Johnson lead the way to show the firemen the stairway Roy and Gage had used to reach the office and the mysteriously stricken man. Cap was right on their heels. "Gage? You ok?" he boomed no nonsense. "I'm fine. Just my leg. Might be a fib fracture. It didn't sound loud enough to be anything else." "This from the voice of experience.." Kelly nodded. "Oh,.. cut it out. The carpeting here, came up on the stair. See?" Johnny waved a hand at everybody to distract them from looking at how red his face was becoming under their penetrating eyes. The mayor did see. He leaned over and told Linda the secretary to go get an employee with a camera to take pictures of the area. "Don't you worry about a thing, Mr. Gage. I've been at the maintenance department for weeks about how loose that was. I'll have your medical bills covered. I set aside some of my own party's funds to handle all insurance claims filed for accidents occurring inside the building a few weeks ago once I found out how badly I was beating my head against the wall trying to get things done around here fixing city hall's architectural problems, including that stair." Just let my secretary know about your bills when they arrive." and he handed over a business card. "And that includes any lost wages on the job." he said empathetically. "I'll have this carpet nailed down in half an hour or my name isn't William A. Johnson, Jr." He waved over one of the security guards to stand over the spot until environmental services could place a caution sign over the area. "It's just a shame that such a dedicated city servant like you, had to get hurt first to expedite things." Johnny took the card, meekily, in awe that he had such a response so fast from such a high up city official. Kelly nudged his shoulder with an elbow while he and Marco splinted up his left lower leg. "Start moaning. Maybe you'll get more." he whispered, sotto voce. "Roy told us about what you said after it happened while he was loading up the guy." Gage scowled. "Chet, I was only kidding about that. Ow, not so tight! Guys, get my shoe off so I can see how my circulation's doing under that splint." |
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Cap came back after radioing on ahead for a replacement paramedic to take Johnny's place at the station when they all cleared from the call. "I had to let Roy go on ahead to Rampart with the victim. He started right back into another convulsion. Eight's is shadowing him in their squad in case he gets into hot water. They were a minute away just off a cancelled call." He watched with interest while Kelly and Lopez gingerly peeled off sock and shoe from Gage's foot. "Is it an open fracture?" he asked, leaning over to look for blood on the leg. "No, closed and simple." Johnny grimaced, wiggling his toes in a neuro and circulation check around the air splint Lopez and Kelly had applied. "Ok, get me on my feet." he told them. They helped him up, slinging Johnny's shaking arms over both their shoulders. "Cap, I can go in the squad. I'm still fine pain wise." Cap studied him closely. Gage felt a trickle of cold sweat pour down his face, betraying him. "I'm not objected to you calling in another squad to get to some pain meds." "Cap, this is embarrassing enough as it is without the entire fire department finding out yet again about another Gage mishap. It's a stigma I've been trying to erase for years now." "This wasn't your fault." Cap reasoned. "I know that. Neither was just about everything else that's happened to me. But the other stations are still keeping bets on my tally. Somehow, they've already found out about the snake, the monkey virus, my fall off the ladder because of that flashover, my hit and run accident...." Mayor Johnson piped up. "Don't forget to tell my attorney when he calls about your pain and suffering, too. I'll not have that unaccounted for in your compensation figures." he said before he hurried away to harrass the just now gathering maintenance crew. Gage winced when he realized how that must have sounded to the frustrated city mayor. He immediately felt guilty. But the queasy feeling growing in his stomach made being tactful nearly impossible. |
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Johnny tried not to frown as Marco and Chet aided him out the very crowded antehall and back outside to the vicinity of the engine and the squad. Cap followed behind with Johnny's helmet and his sock and shoe. With every hop, Gage's bound leg felt like it was on fire. ::The splint's on right. What's the problem?:: he thought, thinking things through. He made them set him down on the squad's seat with the door open long enough for him to do a self blood pressure check when Cap wasn't looking. It was oddly low, and when he weaved from where he sat, he wasn't surprised when Mike Stoker suddenly ran up with the engine's spare 02 and clattered it open. Gage never felt himself being lowered to the ground. His companions' urgent voices swirled away into a loud hissing that was announcing the arrival of a complete and utterly terrifying blackout. His heart started pounding frantically, rising into his eardrums. Then silence slammed down over his awareness and he knew no more. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- "What the--" Cap startled from his place leaning on the Ward's doorframe. He had just finished informing L.A. of their status. He snatched up his HT just as he saw the guys cradle Gage to the sidewalk under the squad's passenger door. "Kelly, what happened?" he said as he watched Stoker set a demand valve over Johnny's nose and mouth and begin to punch the button on its regulator, delivering fully assisted breaths. Chet looked up from Gage as he and Marco got Johnny's shirt open. "Don't know. He took his own pressure, gasped, and then keeled over. Now his heart's racing and Stoker says he's barely breathing." "What was it?" Cap asked of the blood pressure reading his afflicted paramedic had found. "Eighty palpated." said Lopez. Hank thumbed his talk bar on the walkie talkie. "L.A. Engine 51. We have a Code I at our location. Respond an additional squad and ambulance to 534 East Carson Street and Avalon." ##10-4, Engine 51. Time out, 18: 51.## Then Cap looked down and saw a spreading rash quickly appear over Gage's skin and across his chest and neck. "Hold it, hold it." he ordered when he saw Kelly and Marco starting to free their hands up for possible CPR. "Guys, keep your gloves on. That looks like a toxic chemical reaction." In horror, they both looked down. |
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A gust of wind rose, fluttering Gage's opened uniform shirt and cut apart T shirt. Chet suddenly groaned and looked away, grabbing his face. "Oww! My eyes!" Cap shouted to the security guards to pull the crowds back from around the firemen, firetrucks and Johnny. "Get them back! Way back! There's an unknown chemical effecting us! Start clearing out all the areas that victim we treated may have been in contact with. And that includes the stairway! Move out all civilians using other routes! Do that before you do anything else! Mayor Johnson stays on scene. It'll be your ever lovin' rears if he doesn't. He's possibly been exposed to whatver this stuff is the same as we have!" The many city hall guards hastened to follow Cap's orders. Hank grabbed an air bottle off its exterior rack behind E51's cab and slid it on. "Marco, get into your air gear, first. I'll get Mike's. THEN deal with helping Chet wash out his eyes. Whatever this chemical is, it's potent.." "I thought something was fishy about that guy.." Chet coughed, eagerly snatching the reel line Cap dropped by him to start washing his face and eyes clean. "Rabies infection doesn't ever set in that fast.." Air masked donned, Cap got on the radio once again. "Engine 51, L.A. Call in a full Hazmat Response Team immediately and three additional fire stations. Two firemen are down with symptoms of sudden toxicity. Evacuations of the first floor city hall and second floor office suites have been initiated by city security personnel. An immediate Battalion Chief is requested at my scene. We may have an unknown number of casualties inside the building." He dropped to his knees, pulling up his turnout's collar and he bent over Gage to take over his ventilation care while his engineer hastily got into his SCBA gear. ##10-4, 51. Time out, 18:54. Response ETA of the rescue squad is estimated at six minutes to your location. Hazmat and Battalion reports an arrival in ten.## |
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"10-4, L.A. Engine 51 out." Stoker answered for Cap on the abandoned HT near Cap's knees. "How are you feeling?" Mike asked Hank ironically as he shoved on his bottle's air mask. "I'm fine. Calm as peaches, outwardly.." Hank joked. "You?" he said giving Gage another breath with the ventilator when his chest didn't rise high enough on its own for his liking. "Nothing on my end." Stoker said. "I got him.." and he took over for his captain, gripping Johnny's pale, dripping face firmly under his gloves to keep a good open airway. "Just keep all skin exposed areas on yourself, covered up." Hank said, rising, his adrenaline heightened breaths whistling noisily behind his SCBA's face plate. "Marco will stay in case he crashes further." he added when he saw Lopez's thumbs up from the solid wash he was giving Chet's head and hair. Kelly's shirt and coat were abandoned on the sidewalk and he was down to his white T shirt, kneeling over the curb to let the hose outwash flow into the sewer drain. Cap went on, keeping verbal contact with Mike through both their air masks. "If Kelly checks out ok, I'll put him on communications until the other stations get here. Need a relay to Rampart?" "Yeah, Johnny's throat's getting tight. He may need to be intubated before the squad gets here." Stoker said. "Aren't you glad you've been cross training in the experimental intermediate paramedic program of Brackett's? That's been just as innovative this past month as Kelly's cross training as a backup engineer for us behind DeSoto. I guess now's your time to shine." he said without a smile. "I'll grab the spare resp kit from the engine." Cap rose in a hurry and tapped Marco on the shoulder, jerking a gloved thumb over his shoulder at Gage and Stoker. Lopez nodded to Kelly, who was shaking his head like a dog to shed off his contaminated water. "I've got to go. Gage's in the weeds. Stoker's getting a tube out." And he dropped the hose into off before he started running. |
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Kelly slid into his air mask and bottle that Cap had clunked by his feet and blinked water out of his eyes. "You, too, Cap. Go on. I'm ok now.. That strange burning's gone." "You sure?" Cap asked, keeping a safe short distance between himself and Kelly. "Yeah.." Chet voice hissed as he tested his air bottle's regulator. "Ok. Get on the horn and raise Rampart. Stoker's gonna need a doctor for.." "I know.. Marco's just told me." and Chet rushed back to the other firemen. A minute later, Stoker had an HT tucked under one helmeted ear on open talk mode to Kel Brackett when Cap said. "Ch.. r*st All Mighty. I forgot about Roy! He's still with the guy who started all of this." Cap straightened up on his knees and started to call the Mayfair, now half way to Rampart, speeding Code Three. He whipped up his walkie talkie. "L.A. Engine 51. Clear me on Tactical to Squad 51's HT. Emergency!" ##Engine 51. You are on Situation First - Go.## came Lanier's crisp reply. Hank shot to his feet. "Engine 51 to HT 51. Do you read me? Over...." He barely saw Mike Stoker and Marco Lopez being talked through Johnny's endotracheal airway insertion. He didn't envy the difficulty they were facing being stuck inside their work gloves and wearing their steamed up air masks. "Engine 51 to Squad 51. This is Captain Stanley on Priority Override. Do you read?" ------------------------------------------------------- |
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***************************************************** From: Sam Iam <lafddispatcher@yahoo.com> Date: Fri Jul 23, 2004 12:36 pm Subject: Threading the Needle Mike Stoker shouted into the handy talkie perched onto his shoulder. "Rampart this is Engine 51." he yelled through his SCBA mask. "My victim is unresponsive to pain and under full ventilation support. I have access to basic airway equipment as the squad is off scene. Victim is showing a sudden onset rash across his torso and neck with no evidence of hives. Chest rise is nominal. There is no obstruction we can see.." he said as he got an affirming nod from Marco who checked yet again for the effectiveness of the demand valve's seal over Johnny's face. The latin american firefighter was watching closely for signs of movement in Gage's limbs or eyelids and for bad airway trouble in the form of chest noise. The engineer sighed as he watched Cap run fast to coordinate the evacuation of city hall with a hand held megaphone. He could see Hank was torn between learning more about their inadvertent chemical problem and conducting the start of a Level 1 CIS setup. As yet, there were no other engines, nor batallion chiefs within earshot. Stoker and Kelly and Lopez never felt so alone as they did in that moment when Cap disappeared in the crowd. ## 10-4, Engine 51.. uh, is this Mike Stoker ?## came Dr. Brackett's face. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Brackett tilted his head in surprise at Dixie. He lifted his finger from the talk button. "I wonder where Roy is?" he frowned at McCall. Dixie handed him a chart. "Joe handled his call. He's on the way with an unconscious. A male of about 45. Roy said he was an unknown type seizure with pyschotic episode with no known etiology other than possible rabies.. Six minutes out." ##That's affirmative, Rampart.## came Stoker's muffled reply on the radio to Kel's question. Kel lost all doubt in the firefighter's abilities. "Stoker. You know the drill. Have your head man start hyperventilating him. I'll walk you through best I can. I know you've never done one in the field but I have full confidence in you. I should know, I trained you. Now things'll be harder to see on a live person than what you were used to from the program. At no time do you hurry. The soft palate's sensitive in some cases of collapse and the last thing we need is a laryngospasm clamping down and really making things difficult. Let me know when you see the vocal cords, Mike.. You have a minute after Johnny stops getting vented in order to get in a successful route. If you can't get one. Wait. Just hyperventilate again for another two minutes and then try it. Suction is critical if he vomits from his chemical exposure. Be sure to watch out for that." --------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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--------------------------------------------------------------------- Stoker's jaw set into a firm line. He didn't even notice a hose dripping Chet insert himself between Marco and his arms to start applying cricoid pressure. "I got this. And a flashlight so you can see what you're doing.." Kelly coughed and he threaded his second gloved arm through Mike's hands to light up Gage's face. Marco had already placed an engine block under Gage's shoulders to keep his head fallen back. "Are you hurt?" Stoker asked Kelly, without looking up from the blade of the scope he was placing carefully into the right side of Johnny's mouth. "Give me the time." "Twenty eight seconds since the last breath. And no..." Chet said. "Just handle Johnny. L.A. says that 24's is four minutes away. Can you see them yet?" he mumbled through his breathing gear as he kept up the hold that now showed Mike the only passageway down. Stoker's forehead began to sweat. "Where are they?" he whispered to himself, moving the strangely foamy palate away with his blade, searching for the pearly white vocal cords. Louder he said, "Marco, hand me a size 7.0 and peel it. D*mn.. Grade 2, I'm not seeing all the cords, he's swelling a bit.." "Take your time, man. Gage's ok, his color's still very good."Lopez said quietly. "Here. I got it near your left hand." Mike slid the MacIntosh blade a little lower and groped for the endotracheal tube. Suddenly, Johnny's throat locked up and clamped shut. His mouth fell open in an astonished "oh.." that translated into the handy talkie. ##What's the problem, 51?## came Brackett's voice. |
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"Spasm.. It happened when I lifted the scope. I can't see anything.." Mike said a little too fast. ##Relax Stoker. You must've bumped the superior nerve. It'll ease in a bit since he's not chilled. You guys haven't given him his hose bath yet. Just bag him gently on ambu until it loosens. Bound to from hypoxia. Flood him with O2 and try again.## Kel said firmly. ##We've plenty of time..## "Should I let go?" Chet said of his pressure hold. "No..." Mike said. "You're probably keeping him from getting sick. Don't want him aspirating. Keep his esophagus sealed off just like you're doing." Kelly was nervous and took the suction wand up into his free hand nonetheless. Gage's chin twitched. "Is he waking?" "Nah. Doc said it's all reflex in class." Mike gasped as he kept a cross fingers scissor between Johnny's teeth to keep him from injuring himself on the blade's guide. ##Try pulling back a little, 51.## Dr. Brackett said. ##There'll be less stimulus..## Mike eased back just a bit and withdrew the blade up an inch and suddenly, a vocal cord popped into view when Gage's neck muscles stopped cording. "There! I'm threading it." he announced with more confidence than he felt. He tried to keep his hands from trembling. Kelly looked at his watch. "52 seconds." Stoker slowly advanced the tube until it settled onto its mark. "I'm in." he said. "Hand me the ambu.." he said, inflating the airway's internal bottom cuff with a syringe. |
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