Modesto airport prepares for the worst with emergency drill

Emergency responders practiced for disaster Wednesday at a dramatic training session centered on the Modesto Airport.

The scenario was based on a plane crashing shortly after take-off from the airport.

It featured screaming and disoriented victims, rescue crews tending to injured passengers and fire trucks rolling down Modesto’s Tioga Drive.

The Modesto Fire Department, the Red Cross, American Medical Response and other city and county agencies took part in the simulation exercise, which the airport is required to do every three years.

Jerome Thiele, Modesto’s airport manager, thought the exercise was a success, for the most part.