October 11, 2006

Lehigh Northampton Airport Authority Will be Conducting an Aircraft Terrorism Rescue Exercise

Lehigh Valley , PA - The Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority (LNAA) fire fighters will be conducting a terrorism training exercise on Wednesday, October 11, 2006 beginning at 8:30am. A simulation will be set up onboard an aircraft where there will be a terrorist threat of a release of Sarin, a nerve agent, to be released on the airplane with passengers involved along with the threat of explosives. This is the first type of terrorism training held at the Lehigh Valley International Airport that will involve a simulated nerve agent. This training exercise is to improve the first responders’ ability to identify, safely respond to, and minimize the effects of an incident of terrorism involving chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or explosive agents. It provides an in-depth view into tactical considerations and chemical agents. Also involved in the training exercise will be 5 local hospitals, first responders from local bomb squad units, fire departments, Haz Mat teams, FBI, State Police, and the EPA emergency management personnel will be participating in this extensive training program that will be staged at the air cargo apron at the Lehigh Valley International Airport (LVIA) on the southwest side near Postal Road.

Lehigh Valley International Airport is located near Allentown, Pennsylvania and serves a twelve county area with a population of 3.6 million people. The Airport is easily accessible from communities in eastern Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey areas.

Contact:

Susan Kittle
Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority
1 - 800 – FLY – LVIA

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