Those in the E.R. say they were ready and waiting when they found out 12 people were on their way after a school bus overturned on Interstate 80 on Thursday, February 26th, 2015.
All 11 student passengers and the bus driver - Geneseo Middle School Science Teacher, Carrissa Hanson, 42 - were transported by ambulance to Genesis Medical Center in Silvis, Illinois.
When the call first came in, Genesis Spokesman Craig Cooper said the most serious injuries were two students, each with a possible broken leg. However, after a closer look, both students were fine. The other injuries were all minor, Cooper said, and most students walked into the Emergency Room from the ambulance just to get checked out before heading home with their parents.
Overall, Cooper said the response from all the doctors and nurses was "fantastic."
"They drill to do this and their training pays off whenever it actually happens, so they've done a really good job of getting the kids in, making sure the parents are updated, and getting the kids out of here," he explained.
Cooper said they train several times a year for things like radiation, plane accidents, mass casualties, and natural disasters. He called this situation a "patient surge," part of the hospital's disaster alert procedure.
"The training pays off," he said. "Everybody was well-coordinated and knew what they were doing and, if anything, there was probably an over-abundance of staff because everybody responds."
"To get an influx of 12 patients that quickly in the course of 20-30 minutes is a lot for anybody, especially for a hospital this size, but they're trained to do it and they responded the way you expect them to."
"This accident could have been much worse," added Brian Hofer, Principal of Geneseo Middle School. "I saw great treatment by the staff."
That quick and timely training was also evident in what happened on the scene. Illinois State Trooper Jason Wilson said the first trooper was at the crash before it was even called out.
"There's always that luck factor, I guess," he explained. "We're just happy that the routine patrols do catch some of these more critical incidents sometimes when we have our troopers out there constantly patrolling the roads, especially in this type of weather."
"It cut out any lag time for communication, because it was direct communication from that trooper's radio to all the other troopers in the district."
The crash is still under investigation. Trooper Wilson says Hanson will receive a ticket for driving "too fast for conditions" and the court system will decide how much the fine or other punishment will be.
In the meantime, Trooper Wilson says icy patches of road and black ice will continue to be a challenge as the temperatures drop and to be careful while driving:
"I think it serves as a reminder to everybody that once you get the snow on the ground, even though it stops flying in the air, you have to pay attention to the winds that are actually out there, because it could pick up that snow and deposit it right back on the roadway that was freshly plowed, that was just salted."
"We constantly talk about the overpasses and the ramps and the shady areas where the sun doesn't hit," he continued. "Those are areas are prone to developing black ice very quickly, so we have to make sure and remind people constantly that these conditions can be extremely dangerous simply because it gives you the confidence that you can drive faster than what you really should be driving."