Local Law Enforcement Stages Emergency Response Drill with Public Safety

By Christopher Sarachilli | June 6, 2016

Arcadia University, in conjunction with Montgomery County Public Safety and Bomb Disposal Unit and the Cheltenham Police Department, EMS, and Fire Department, held an emergency response drill on Thursday, May 26. Working with Arcadia’s Public Safety Department and University Emergency Management, team personnel staged a fire within Boyer Hall, replicated medical emergencies, simulated a bomb threat, and detonated a package on Haber Green.

The drill, held each year on Arcadia’s campus, was designed to test the preparedness of Montgomery County’s emergency responders and hone the response skills of the University’s safety department, faculty, staff, and students. Arcadia also tested the capabilities of the Send Word Now emergency alert service, sending multiple messages to various campus groups throughout the morning. 

“It’s important that students and their families know that the campus is secure and safe,” said Lieutenant Allen Stewart of Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Disposal Unit. “It’s also good for the entire university community to know that if something like this were to happen, all of these law enforcement agencies are familiar with the campus and the university personnel.”