NORTH VERNON, Ind. — Jennings County Emergency Management Agency and LEPC hosted a full-scale emergency response training exercise at Muscatatuck Urban Training Center (MUTC) in Jennings County on Monday, September 11.
The exercise was conducted to test and improve the community’s overall preparedness for an emergency event. Industrial Safety and Training Services was the facilitator for this exercise.
Jerry Shepherd, Director of the Jennings County Emergency Management, said “This is our annual exercise. It’s time to test our resources, test our response, find out gaps that we need to fill.”
Monday’s scenario was a train derailment, an event that happens at least once a day in the U.S. Jennings County has its share of trains that come through downtown North Vernon daily, so a train accident is not impossible.
Not coincidentally, the emergency response training took place on the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks that killed almost 3,000 people.
“We decided to do it on 9/11, because of […] all the first responders that died. These men and women are out there every day, we did it in their honor,” said Shepherd.
