OTTUMWA — When disaster strikes, it’d be handy to have a Girl Scout nearby. At least, one of the girls who went through a two-day disaster training camp.

Julie Barwick, one of the adult leaders for Ottumwa Troop 926, said the Emergency Preparedness Camp held Friday and today on the Indian Hills Community College campus drew Girl Scouts from Eddyville, Oskaloosa, Ankeny, Brooklyn and Des Moines.

The material they were learning were actual hands-on skills, yet with many of the girls 10 and under, the material was kept age appropriate.

“To get your safety award as a cadet (sixth- and seventh-graders) you will need to learn CPR,” said Lori Reeves, Troop 926 leader.

Instead, she was teaching the younger girls how to save a victim of choking. The Heimlich Maneuver is designed to dislodge an object which is blocking a person’s airway.

Later, the fire department showed up and, after teaching the girl how to use a fire extinguisher, started a fire.

“It was a blast. The [firefighters] put kerosene in a great big bowl,” said Barwick, “and actually lit it on fire. Then the girls used fire extinguishers to put it out.”

To show the girls firsthand what happens when an ambulance arrives, Ottumwa Regional Health Center sent their newest emergency vehicle to the camp, along with a pair of paramedics.

Vickie Willey and Nikki Thordarson showed the girls the big oxygen tank, the monitoring devices and the inside of the ambulance. They also demonstrated the importance of strength.

A patient, they told the girls, may weigh 200 pounds. The “bed” that comes out of the back of the rescue vehicle, and onto which the patient is placed, weighs 120 pounds.

With an OK from the paramedics, a few of the Girl Scouts tried to lift the unit.

Both of the ladies can lift the gurney by themselves, but they usually work as a team: That way, they joked, they don’t get hurt and have to call an ambulance.

But how would a 10-year-old call for an ambulance in an emergency? The girls went to a classroom to receive their next lesson: contacting emergency dispatchers.

“What are some of the medical situations that might require you to call 9-1-1?” asked Reeves.

“If a really old person fell down,” answered one girl.