Simulated Patients Become Real Ones

The line between fantasy and reality was blurred -- then crossed -- during a disaster drill at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia Tuesday.

During the drill -- a twice-yearly training and preparedness exercise -- five of 835 volunteers succumbed to scorching mid-day heat by losing consciousness.

Two others required medical intervention from smoke inhalation, according to New Zealand's TVNZ.

One actor had been 'rescued' earlier in the drill and was left lying on a grassy area at the 'crash site'. A real nurse, also taking part in the simulation, 'treated' her 'wounds'... before realizing the woman was, in fact, truly unconscious.

A firefighter and an airport worker required medical treatment for smoke inhalation and were taken to a local hospital.

Kuala Lumpur International Airport is located about 31 miles south of the Malaysian capital and processes more than 23 million passengers annually.

Carriers such as Air India, Japan's Air Mauritius, China Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines service the airport.

FMI: www.klia.com.my