Area agencies take part in tabletop terror exercise

Representatives of area emergency agencies take part in a recent tabletop exercise concerning hypothetical terrorism at area lakes. (Courtesy photo)

McCOOK, Nebraska -- The McCook office of the Federal Bureau of Reclamation recently hosted a tabletop exercise for response agencies.

The exercise consisted of a terrorism related event at Swanson Lake which evolved into other such events in nature at Harry Strunk Lake and Medicine Creek Reservoir.

Each scenario had a different spin than the other to make local response agencies as well as State and Federal partners provide insight from their particular specialty in such a response.

Participating agencies included Red Willow Sheriff's Department, Red Willow County Emergency Management, Red Willow Western Rural Fire, McCook Police Department Furnas County Emergency Management, Region 15 Emergency Management, Hayes County Emergency Management, Frontier County Sheriff's Dept., Frontier County Board of Commissioners, Nebraska State Patrol, Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, National Weather Service from North Platte, Goodland, and Hastings, Trenton Ag Products, and the Bureau of Reclamation