(BALTIMORE) On Wednesday, July 16, 2014, federal, state and local public safety agencies will conduct a full-scale exercise based on response to a distressed passenger vessel in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.  This exercise, which will take place from 8:00 a.m. until noon in the water near the 3200 block of Boston Street in Canton. The exercise will focus primarily on preparing emergency responders to effectively respond to a large-scale water rescue incident in the Inner Harbor.
 
The purpose of this exercise is to provide participants with an opportunity to evaluate current response concepts, plans, and capabilities for responding to a major incident in the Inner Harbor. The exercise will focus on key local emergency responder coordination, critical decision making, and integration of the State and Federal assets necessary to save lives. Emergency responders will respond and rescue flotation devices and dummies in place of live victims, and dive team members will conduct recovery operations.
 
Representatives from the following agencies will participate in the exercise:

• Baltimore City Fire Department
• Baltimore Police Department
• Baltimore Water Taxi
• Maryland Department of Natural Resources Police
• United States Coast Guard
• United States Naval Reserve

For more information on this exercise, including information about a media staging area, please contact:
 
C.P. Hsia
Mayor's Office of Emergency Management
City of Baltimore
Office: (410) 396-6183
cp.hsia@baltimorecity.gov