Lehi Fire needs you to play a 'victim' in a mass-casualty drill this week

The Lehi Fire Department wants residents to show up, sit in lawn chairs, and pretend they're at a concert — then let first responders practice saving their lives.

The department is recruiting volunteers to serve as role-playing 'victims' in a mass-casualty active-threat exercise scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 3 and 4, at Lehi Family Park, 1999 N. 600 East. The exercise runs noon to approximately 5 p.m. each day, with two scenario runs per day, according to Gephardt Daily and the event's Eventbrite listing.

We need volunteers.— Lehi Fire Department

The scenario is built around a simulated outdoor concert, and organizers are leaning into the realism: volunteers are asked to bring chairs and blankets as if they were actually attending one. Special effects will include simulated gunfire. Some participants will be selected for elevated roles — being assessed, treated, or even transported by medical personnel — as the exercise tests the coordinated response of Lehi's police, fire, and city services.

Because this training event is happening in November, please dress accordingly.— Lehi Fire Department, sign-up page

The National Weather Service is forecasting highs in the mid- to upper-50s Fahrenheit with partially sunny skies for those days, according to Gephardt Daily — cold enough to matter if you're sitting outside for hours.

Signing up is required through the department's Eventbrite page, and volunteers must also complete a Lehi Police Department waiver. That waiver can be emailed to kdaly@lehi-ut.gov or filled out in person at a mandatory briefing the night before the exercise begins.

The mandatory volunteer briefing takes place Monday, Nov. 2, at 6 p.m. in the community room on the first floor of the Lehi Civic Center, 131 N. 100 East. Parking for the exercise itself is available near the Family Park amphitheatre.

Mass-casualty drills of this scale require realistic crowd numbers to be useful — the more volunteers who show up, the more accurately responders can rehearse triage, communication, and transport under pressure. For anyone curious about how Lehi's first responders train for worst-case scenarios, this is a rare chance to see it from the inside.

Why it matters — Lehi first responders need realistic crowd numbers to make this training meaningful — and any Utah County resident can sign up to help them prepare for a real mass-casualty event.

Sources differ on End time of daily exercise: 5 p.m. (gephardtdaily.com) vs 4:30 p.m. (eventbrite.com)

Reported by dailywise.com, gephardtdaily.com, eventbrite.com