LICKING COUNTY, Ohio — Efforts are underway to support the emergency crews who responded to Tuesday's fatal crash on Interstate 70 that killed six people and injured 18 others.
Equipped with experience in law enforcement, Lieutenant Steve Click and Nikki Riley know first-hand the pain that responding to a situation like that can cause.
“Nothing can truly prepare somebody for an event like yesterday,” said Riley. Riley is the First Responder Liaison at the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (OhioMHAS).
“They're going to carry this with them forever,” Lt. Click said. "A lot of people say they want to get over it but they never will."
Leaning on their empathy to support others, they help lead one of the state's only state programs of its kind.
"We don't want it to just be a Band-Aid. We want to make sure that we are giving them the training and the resources to be resilient all the way through because we want them to be healthy as they move into that next chapter,” said Lt. Click.
The Office of First Responder Wellness launched two years ago this November.
The focus is on supporting the tens of thousands of firefighters, police officers and other first responders in Ohio.
Starting now and in the weeks and months to come, they will work in groups and one-on-one with those impacted by Tuesday's crash on I-70 that claimed the lives of six people.
“It's very heavy and it's heartbreaking to all of us,” said Riley. “And I think we all go home and we think if what if it was one of our family members and we're all humans too and it does impact us we go out and we put on a brave face and we do what we need to do in that moment but it does impact us deeply and that our hearts go out to everybody that was involved in that situation.”