Postal Service and First Responders to Hold Emergency Drill June 9

Exercise at Cincinnati Mail Facility to Test Biohazard Alert Response

CINCINNATI, OH — A large-scale emergency exercise, including a practice evacuation, will take place at the U.S. Postal Service’s Cincinnati Processing and Distribution Center, 1623 Dalton Avenue, on Monday, June 9, 2008 from approximately 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.

The Postal Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Cincinnati Police Department, Cincinnati Fire & Rescue, the Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati Public Health, Dept. of Homeland Security, the FBI and OSHA will participate.

The purpose of the exercise is to provide practical experience to all participants in the event of a biohazard alert. “This drill will allow all first responders to simulate their respective actions in the event of a biohazard alert at the Postal Service processing facility, said Walt Mace, manager of the Emergency Management Team for the Postal Service. “We feel an obligation to our employees and the community to be prepared should an actual emergency or alert occur.”

The Cincinnati Police Department will provide security and traffic control services, while fire and rescue teams will conduct a biohazard response, including decontamination of volunteer participants. Cincinnati Public Health will simulate gathering health information, counseling participants and providing emergency medication.

The Main Office Window at the facility will evacuate and be closed briefly sometime between 10:00 and 10:30 a.m. Traffic along Liberty Street and Dalton Avenue may be momentarily interrupted for emergency vehicles, but will not be blocked. Processing at the facility and mail delivery will not be impacted.

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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. 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.