So I joined a WhatsApp group.

[cimorene]

I have a first aid certification, but I've been encouraged a few times to get the higher level one that lets you volunteer to staff the first aid booths at events. The local group is a little thin and they're always trying to recruit apparently.

Although that means free admission to the events in question as well, it's not that part that sounds good, but I talked to several of the group members about their practice exercises. They stage emergency simulations of different types, and they also call on group members to be the patient in exercises - not just the group's own exercises, but for the volunteer fire department and volunteer search and rescue as well. My boss has been cut out of a car with the jaws of life or whatever it's called and evacuated from burning building exercises (they use smoke machines - can't actually burn a building on purpose), among other things.

This sounds fascinating and so fun to me. I also am convinced that this type of exercise would make a great background context for a murder mystery, but I don't know enough about how it works yet to imagine the plot.

Comments

[vass]

Cool. I tried that once and immediately noped out because I didn't like the people, but I'm living in a completely different area now, so maybe I should try again.

[cimorene]

There are a bunch of different orgs involved in the emergency stuff here at least - orienteering, first aid, the rescue focused ones, and the dog rescue ones, and the like mental first aid ones, and then first... helpers?, but also some stuff to do with boats. So you might have multiple chances to find people you get along with of you're interested! Depending on the local structure of course.