Full Notification

Hamilton County Emergency Management and the Hamilton County Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) are hosting a three-day training exercise October 12, 13, and 14 at the training grounds located on River Road in Noblesville. Designed to test and train first responders, the exercise will present real-life situations officers may encounter in Hamilton County as well as assess the tactics, skills, and equipment used to respond to those situations.

The training, conducted in partnership with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, Noblesville Police and Fire Departments, Carmel Police and Fire Departments, Westfield Police and Fire Departments, Cicero Fire Department, Fishers Fire Department, Indiana State Police, Department of Natural Resources, Hamilton County Public Safety Communications, and the Red Cross, is part of an on-going series of trainings to foster cooperation among the many jurisdictions represented in Hamilton County as they prepare for a variety of responses to natural and man-made disasters. Multi-agency responses also provide practical experience in using the Incident Command System that are instituted in cases of a large scale emergency or disaster.

The October training consists of a simulated hazardous materials release of anhydrous ammonia as the result of the discovery of a lab manufacturing methamphetamine. First responders will deal with multiple scenarios from the discovery of the meth lab, the release of hazardous materials, the possible contamination of soil, air, and water, and the resulting cleanup of property and personnel. A disaster situation such as this may necessitate mutual support by agencies across the county so inter-agency training is important. Responders from the participating agencies will be rotated through the exercises during the three-day training.

Motorists and residents along River Road near 160th Street may see large amounts of first responder traffic in the area during the course of the three day exercise that runs between the hours of 8AM and 4:30PM. Police and fire vehicles will be entering, staging, and exiting the training grounds throughout the day so please use extra caution. No road closures are planned.

Funding for the training is provided by a Hazardous Material Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) grant.