Following a major disaster, first responders who provide fire
and medical services will not be able to meet the demand for
these services. Factors such as number of victims, communication
failures and road blockages will prevent people from accessing
emergency services they have come to expect at a moment's notice
through 911. People will have to rely on each other for help in
order to meet their immediate life saving and life sustaining
needs. One also expects that under these kinds of conditions,
family members, fellow employees and neighbors will
spontaneously try to help each other. This was the case
following the Mexico City earthquake where untrained,
spontaneous volunteers saved 800 people. However, 100 people
lost their lives while attempting to save others. This is a high
price to pay and is preventable through training. If we can
predict that emergency services will not meet immediate needs
following a major disaster, especially if there is no warning as
in an earthquake and people will spontaneousl