By Clark Corbin
Idaho Falls Post Register
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — It will be designed to resemble a real emergency, with sirens flashing and dozens of police officers and firefighters attempting to contain a radioactive spill at Melaleuca Field.
But there will be no actual danger Thursday as a team of local emergency responders from the U.S. Department of Energy’s regional Radiological Assistance Program Team completes a day of training exercises at the local baseball stadium.
The training, sponsored by the Department of Energy and officials from Idaho Falls and Bonneville County, will give local emergency crews and Idaho Bureau of Homeland Security officials practice at responding to simulated chemical spills and a mock terrorist attack that utilizes a radioactive bomb.
“It’s extremely important for all of our emergency responders to train together and to plan and coordinate ahead of time,” U.S. Department of Energy spokesman Tim Jackson said. “It’s going to save time and money in a real emergency.”
Officials picked Melaleuca Field as Thursday’s training site because it will give emergency crews practice responding to a radiation emergency in a large, public venue, Jackson said.
As a result of the training, residents living on or around Elva Street, Blaine Avenue and Iona Street can expect to see and hear the crews as they train at the ballpark and in the surrounding parking lots. The simulation is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. and continue until about 3:30 p.m., Jackson said.
Knut Meyerin, the city’s spokesman, said the simulations are an “unscripted exercise” and it will be up to the incident commander to determine whether streets will be temporarily blocked off or traffic flows will be altered.
“We just want to let people to know so they can be aware of it and be careful to look out for emergency crews when they are out and about,” Meyerin said.
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