FORT PIERCE, Fla. — First responders have been working long hours taking part in search efforts and aiding neighborhoods in distress after Milton.
WPTV's Jon Shainman got a look at the efforts of one trauma center as tornadoes touched down across the area.
When the first emergency calls went out, the staff at HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital sprang into action. Fifteen people who were injured by the tornadoes were brought to the facility.
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With Hurricane Milton approaching, the emergency team was already in place.
"We have three trauma surgeons in house ready for something like that," said Dr. David Rubay, trauma medical director.
Rubay says the tornado outbreak presented unique challenges as the hospital didn’t know how many patients were coming, and what type of injuries, which ran the gamut from simple bumps and bruises to critical and fatal injuries.
"These injuries are resulting from blunt trauma to the whole body. Some people had the whole roof collapse on them," Rubay said.
As the largest trauma facility between West Palm Beach and Melbourne, the hospital followed its disaster response protocols. Rubay says there were not just physical scars, but mental scars as well.
"And they were in a state of shock and disbelief that this had happened to them and they were telling us they had lost everything and I was telling them, ‘No, you didn’t, because you are still alive.'"
The doctor says one reason they were ready for all of these patients is that twice a year, they do mass casualties exercises.
