Can Lafayette Handle A Mass Casualty Situation? [VIDEO]

Many times when a tragedy happens, like the Orlando massacre, people tend to focus on the scene of the horror.

But what about the scene that is the result of that scene - the hospital?

Could we absorb that kind of trauma if it happened in our area?

Today on "Acadiana's Morning News," Dr. Dennis Eschete, Trauma Medical Director at LGMC, joined Rob Kirkpatrick and Bernadette Lee to answer that question.

"It's a complex answer," responded Dr. Eschete.

He pointed out just how important it is for helping triage those critically wounded patients, getting those patients ready to go to the hospital with stretches and other important medical supplies.

Then, Dr. Eschete took Rob and Bernie to the scene of the hospital and pointed out how critical it is that they have the ability to move patients from the ER to get the ER ready to allow for those critically wounded patients to be brought in.

Dr. Eschete was then asked if LGMC has the ability to put many people in surgery at the same time, like what happened in Orlando.

"The answer is absolutely yes," said Dr. Eschete.

He discussed how they currently run three operating rooms and run mock shooter drills in their facility. Plus, he noted that when the shooting happened at the Grand Theater inLafayette, outside surgeons called them offering assistance.

"The one thing I want to let everyone from Lafayette realize is...the chance of this happening is like lightning striking twice in the same area. Unlikely to happen, always a possibility, but we always have to be as prepared as possible."

Listen to the short discussion below: