Multiple agencies stage mock hurricane exercise

By PETE BANDA
Special to the PRESS
reporter@sbnewspaper.com

In what was billed as the first exercise of its kind ever performed in the state of Texas and the largest in the nation, Cameron County officials held their Rio Grande Valley Air Evacuation Full Scale Hurricane Exercise this Wednesday and Thursday.

The exercise began inside the San Benito High School gym where an estimated 300 Cameron County residents were given medical tests and screened by the TSA before being shuttled over to the Valley International Airport for evacuation to Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin.

More than 25 organizations, including the Department of Health and Human Services, Texas Department of Emergency Management, and the American Red Cross, came together to participate in the exercise. San Benito CISD was also among the groups participating in the event, with three board members and Superintendent Dr. Adrian Vega all taking part in what was a three hour mock up of exactly what would occur in a real life evacuation.

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