Local agencies conduct annual drill at Alameda Corridor

Public safety officials conducted a large-scale training exercise Sunday along a section of the Alameda Corridor in Compton.

The Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority's annual drill involved teams from the Compton Fire Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, Los Angeles Fire Department, Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway and other law enforcement personnel.

More than 130 participants responded to potential scenarios involving a large-scale fire, hazardous material incident or an injured person inside the Corridor trench.

"It is so important to have training like this to ensure multiple agencies can plan and test their responses in a controlled environment," ACTA CEO Michael Leue said. "The Corridor trench presents a unique set of circumstances should we ever encounter an emergency, and today's drill was very important in terms of preparedness. I want to thank and commend our first responders for their participation and dedication."

The Alameda Corridor is a 20-mile-long rail "expressway" that connects the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles to transcontinental rail routes near downtown Los Angeles for regional and national goods movement.

"We hope an incident never occurs, but today's training ensures multiple agencies are ready for a coordinated response. We learned a lot today from a very valuable opportunity," said Compton Fire Battalion Chief Reginald Donald, who served as the incident commander for the exercise.