On May 11 a large part of City Campus will be “under siege” from an emergency management exercise. Planning for the TERREX 11 exercise has been in the works for more than a year, and on that day, up to 1,000 role players, law enforcement officers, emergency personnel, communications and tactical experts and others will participate in a six-hour drill to assess response procedures.
As part of the full-scale emergency training exercise, Nebraska Emergency Management Agency will create the emergency drill to come as close as possible to a real incident, to test preparation by local, county, state and federal agencies. The exercise will involve real equipment and personnel, and volunteer role players (“actors”) during the scenario. Oldfather Hall will be the site for a mock shooting. Faculty and staff who planned to work in Oldfather on May 11 will be drawn in to the event, or should avoid the area if they don’t intend to participate. Most campus operations should continue as usual, although some buildings adjacent to Oldfather will be affected. Parking operations should carry on as usual.
The exercise will include participants from UNL, Lincoln Police and Lincoln Fire departments, Lancaster County Sheriff, Nebraska State Patrol, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, FBI, and Bryan/LGH and St. Elizabeth hospitals.
Anyone willing to volunteer as a participant role-player in the drill can contact Beth Benson at bbenson2@unl.edu. Volunteers should be 19 or older. Lunch will be provided. Questions about the exercise can be directed to UNL assistant police chief Fred Gardy at fgardy2@unl.edu, 472-2222.