River emergency drills take officers' training 'to another level'

PADUCAH — Law enforcement and emergency response agencies from Paducah and the surrounding region joined the U.S. Coast Guard on the Ohio River at the Port of Paducah Wednesday for boat drills designed to prepare them to respond to maritime emergencies.

Among the agencies taking part were the Paducah Police Department; the Paducah Fire Department; the McCracken County Sheriff’s Office; McCracken County Emergency Management; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Illinois Department of Natural Resources; and the Cape Girardeau, Missouri, Police Department SWAT Team.

Out on the water, the crews practiced responding to scenarios that could potentially happen aboard towing vessels. An Ingram Barge Company vessel was part of the event, which was held from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

"We see the Ohio River every day, but...there's commerce that flows through that we might not take note of, and it's important to protect our maritime security and enforce it," Coast Guard Lt. Emma Compagnoni said.

Compagnoni said Wednesday's event was one of the larger exercises organized by the Coast Guard, and the planning required was "extensive."

"I think they've been planning for a little over a year," she said. "We do tabletop exercises and then [the drill] itself...We have our Area Maritime Security Meetings, so everyone comes together, and they kind of initiate what a drill would be, aside from a tabletop exercise."

The day's exercises included an active shooter drill, Compagnoni said. Other training exercises included man overboard drills and practice boarding a commercial vessel, among other skills. 

Illinois Conservation Police Officer Marc Folden was among the many law enforcement officers who traveled to Paducah for Wednesday's drills. According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the state's conservation police officers have statewide authority, and they assist other agencies in emergencies and during rescue operations. Folden said he and a team of his fellow officers attended the event to practice boarding a larger vessel actively moving on the water, and to prepare to "eliminate the threat" if a real shooting were to occur on a vessel.

Illinois Conservation Police officers usually conduct training exercises on land, Folden said, and the opportunity to participate in drills on the water with a moving vessel takes the experience "to another level."

"It just brings a little bit more heightened level of adrenaline whenever you're on the water and you have to be safe with the approach the dismount from the approaching vessel onto the other vessel, and then not knowing what to expect on there," he said. "We're used to clearing houses, you know, buildings and that type [of structure], but not knowing exactly what's on one of these larger vessels on the water is just an extra level of training that we all need."

In addition to enhancing maritime incident response, Compagnoni said the drills help foster deeper connections among the Coast Guard and area first responders.

"As the Coast Guard, especially on the western rivers, we really rely on our port partners to come in, so it's kind of a great time for us to build that relationship, you know, expand on it...and kind of get a stronger foundation for certain situations in the future," she said.

Folden said building those relationships benefits state and local agencies as well.

"The networking is really important...because we don't know who's going to be available and able to respond in an emergency on the river like this," he said, noting that he was grateful for the opportunity to connect with local law enforcement officers and members of the U.S. Coast Guard.

Leanne Fuller is the news editor for The Paducah Sun.