Border patrol hosts emergency training exercise in Maine

Law enforcement officials and first responders recently gathered at the University of Maine to participate in an emergency preparedness training exercise hosted by the U.S. Border Patrol.

The “tabletop” exercise was part of the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program’s Multi-Year Training and Exercise Plan. The exercise was created to test the abilities of first responders and how well they can quickly respond to hypothetical emergency situations.

A number of law enforcement and emergency response agencies at the local, state and federal levels in the U.S. and Canada participated in the exercise.

“Training and problem-solving with our law enforcement and emergency response partners in a controlled environment is crucial to our shared mission of public safety and security,” said Daniel Hiebert, chief patrol agent, Houlton Sector. “We want all entities to be on the same page and confident in their roles and responsibilities if we are ever faced with a real-world, multi-agency, emergency response.”

The training consisted of a mock scenario featuring a terrorist attack. Participants discussed appropriate responses from law enforcement, emergency medical and fire departments and communication between agencies and with the community.

The goal of the exercise was to see how well participants were prepared to respond to man-made and natural events. Should the United States encounter an event such as an earthquake, mass shooting or terrorist attack, the data collected from the tabletop exercise will help the agencies better prepare.