AUGUSTA, Ga. (WFXG) - What would Augusta Regional Airport do in the case of a plan crash? It's an all too real possibility the CSRA experienced first-hand recently.

The Federal Aviation Administration requires the airport to conduct drills every three years.

Emergency response agencies from Richmond County joined airport personnel to practice procedures needed in the event of an actual emergency.

Lauren Smith, Assistant Director of Marketing and Public Relations, says the mock drill at Augusta Regional Airport serves as a learning experience, to see what works and what doesn't.

"We have other airport employees that train all of the time for any type of incident that could occur out here," Smith says. "But, it’s very important for us to make sure we practice with our partners because should there be an incident out here, we will need to call in mutual aid agreements and have other counties actually come in and assist. So, it’s really important that we continue to build those relationships and make sure that everything would flow smoothly.”

In the simulation exercise, students from A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering played the role of passengers made up to look like victims of a place crash.

"They put makeup on us and they gave us these tags with our symptoms," student Zyani Recendiz says. "I have minor cuts and I have blood in my ears."

The Augusta Fire Department responded to the mock site, putting the blaze out as emergency responders triaged patients and secured the scene.

Although, the live emergency drill is required by the Federal Aviation Administration regulations, first responders say the experience gained is invaluable.

“It’s helpful to do the hands-on portion because you’re more likely to see where you would make mistakes," Autumn McIntyre, Director of Burns Services says. "Talking through it, everything sounds good in theory a lot of the time. But, when you put it into practice that’s when you really see all the potential gaps.”

Airport officials will hold a debrief in the coming days to grade themselves and discuss ways to improve.

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