Useppa Emergency Response Training - Thoughts by Useppa Fire Department's Marc Mascarelli and Pictures by UseppaGin, Doug and Taylor Ryan - The waters of Lee County oftentimes require a multi-agency approach to many types of operations. This also proves true for island-based structure fires, brushfires, and any incident type which requires a force multiplier; this is why the Marine Emergency Response Team (MERT) was established and works well for the Southwest Florida area. MERT assets met at Useppa Marina last week for an Island walk-through discussing and identifying Useppa Fire Department capability and needed MERT response in the event of a structure fire. Similar responses were discussed about nearby islands including Cabbage Key, Upper Captiva, Mondongo, Burgess, and Cayo Costa. All islands in Lee County which have residential structures and need multi-asset MERT response. Lee Med Flight helicopter landed and demonstrated their transport capabilities and answered questions from the group. In the afternoon a drill was conducted using all Fire and Law Enforcement assets. The drill was a mock scenario of a mass casualty incident which involved getting treatment and transport of several patients to the Marina and off the island. Participants included Lee County EMS, Lee Flight, Lee County Dispatch, Lee County Sheriff, Charlotte County Sheriff, BOCA Grande Fire Department, Useppa Fire, Pine Island Fire, Iona McGregor Fire, Cape Coral Police, Cape Coral FD, US Coast Guard, and students from FSW Florida South Western College. Thank you to all who participated.