Trauma exercise: hypothetical situation, involving actors as witnesses

EYEWITNESS ACCOUNT:

Carrie Stevenson, volunteer ambulance worker from Camden

Carrie Stevenson, survivor of the Stamford Bridge bombings

I have been a volunteer rescue worker for St John’s ambulance for five years. I would never have imagined that I would be needed for something as huge as helping with the aftermath of the bomb.

When I heard the explosion I was at the other end of the stadium, directly opposite the worst affected area. I heard a loud sound and then I saw smoke but no flames. I heard screaming, with smoke and dust everywhere. I saw body parts from all the way where I was sitting at the other end of the stadium.

I don’t know what people looked like exactly - I don’t want to remember. I just recall some had their clothes ripped off from the blast and some people were left in their underwear. The other ambulance workers helped me to leave the grounds and when I left the area I saw around 30 people had been killed.

It was an important match so there was more security than there normally is, so we were expecting some incidents with the football fans. We were never expecting to be needed for something like this. I only had basic training for my volunteer work with the ambulance, the training doesn’t cover how to help people when there is a terrorist attack.

I’m usually an insurance broker during the week and I just work as a volunteer for the ambulance at the weekends. My work with the ambulance is to help people but I couldn’t do anything, I was absolutely helpless. All I could do was inform the manager about the explosion. I was unable to help him because I hurt my ankle and I was in shock. I can’t even remember how I managed to hurt my ankle.