A number of local, state and federal agencies will participate in a simulated improvised explosive device (IED) exercise at the Port of Tacoma on Friday. There will be two scenarios along the Blair Waterway where IEDs will be discovered and disposed of.

The purpose of the exercise is to demonstrate how agencies and companies will respond together to a potential terrorism threat within the Port of Tacoma. It will also evaluate the improved interoperable communications between the agencies. Along with emergency responder agencies, several Port of Tacoma terminals and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) are participating in this event.

Participants include the Port of Tacoma, Tacoma Police Department, 10th Civil Support Team, APM Terminal, Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Energy, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Husky Terminal, International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), Olympic Container Terminal, Pacific NW Terminal, Pierce County Department of Emergency Management, Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, Pierce County Terminal, Regional Intelligence Group, South Sound 911, Tacoma Fire Department, Totem Ocean Trailer Express (TOTEM), Transportation Security Administration, United States Coast Guard, Washington State Department of Ecology, Washington State Fusion Center, and the Washington State Patrol Bomb Squad.

This exercise is funded through the Port Security Grant program of the federal Department of Homeland Security.