MERIDEN -- While there are many still trying to grasp the massacre that occurred in Las Vegas, there are lifelong Vegas residents, now working in Connecticut, who feel helpless, but remain hopeful.
Meriden Fire Chief Ken Morgan was a Deputy Chief for the Clark County Fire Department, which serves Las Vegas, for 24 years before moving East Coast several years ago.
As soon as Morgan determined his daughter and son-in-law were OK, back home in Vegas, he reached out to his former chief.
"He didn't have time to talk to me, obviously," said Morgan. "The only thing he could tell me was that it was really bad."
Morgan said he desperately wanted to be there to help implement what's called a smart triage system, "which gives you about 30 seconds to evaluate a patient and determine what their status is and move to the next patient," he said.
He said Las Vegas first responders and hospitals train regularly for active shooter incidents, but "we don't train for the capacity for 500 victims," said Morgan. "It would be tough to do in a training scenario. But, the principles are still the same."
Information coming out about those wounded remains very fluid.
"I haven't confirmed it yet, but we believe that one of the police officers, that was a casualty, coached football with my son in law," said Morgan.
And, a Quinnipiac University professor said she has never missed her native Las Vegas so much.
Professor Cindy Kern, of the Quinnipiac School of Education, said she "felt separated. I felt so anxious. I felt like I needed to do something. I can't go down and give blood. I donated money, but that just doesn't feel like enough."
A couple of former high school students she taught in Nevada attended the concert. One was critically injured.
"He actually took a bullet that caused major internal damage," said Kern.
She said he remains in serious, but stable condition. And, because the most deadly shooting in U.S. history occurred in Vegas, she's hoping gun control measures will finally be on the table.
"If we can say Las Vegas is that global city that everybody has a connection to or lots of people have a connection to then maybe more people will be willing to have those conversations," she added.
Chief Morgan said he and his wife now have even more to be thankful for when they go visit their daughter's family back in Las Vegas for Thanksgiving.