Postal Service to Conduct Emergency Preparedness Drill at Rockford Processing Center

This is Only a Drill

ROCKFORD IL — The U.S. Postal Service, in cooperation with local first responders and public health officials, will conduct an evacuation drill and Biohazard Detection System response exercise. This is part of the Postal Service’s ongoing efforts to safeguard communities, employees and test its emergency preparedness plans.

The response exercise will begin at 4:15 p.m. on Tuesday, October 16 at the Rockford Processing and Distribution Center located at 5225 Harrison Avenue in Rockford, IL. The exercise will include participation from the Rockford Police Department, Rockford Fire Department, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Winnebago County Department of Public Health and FBI.

The facility and property will not be accessible from 4:15 - 5:15 p.m. from the 26th Avenue entrance. During the evacuation the Rockford Main Post Office (located at the same address as the Rockford P&DC) will be closed briefly at 4:15 p.m. Retail service will re-open by 4:30 p.m.

The exercise is only a precaution. There is no evidence of any new anthrax-contaminated letters in the mail.

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An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation, 146 million homes and businesses, six days a week. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.