The Detroit River will be busy this weekend when multiple emergency services participate in a training exercise called "Ex Border Sentinel."
More than 80 sailors from several agencies, including the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve - HMCS Hunter, the Canadian and U.S. Coast Guards, Windsor and LaSalle Police, Essex County EMS, and fire departments from LaSalle and Leamington, have two days of emergency preparedness training planned.
"This is just so we understand how each other works, that we're doing things the same way, and prepare in the event of a large-scale emergency on our waterway," said LaSalle Police Senior Constable Terry Seguin.
That includes knowing how to operate the different vessels used by each service.
"Collaboration is essential to ensure we have a quick, coordinated, and efficient response," said Seguin. "We are the ones that are going to be responding to some sort of large-scale emergency or large-scale disaster, even a terrorist attack."
Seguin said the scenarios are as realistic as possible.
"If there's an oil spill, and [the exercise is] how to put out the absorbent booms that catch the fluids -- we use popcorn," he said. "We don't put any chemicals in the water."
Seguin also warned residents living nearby they might use pyrotechnics.
"We're not talking about explosions or anything like that. That's just a reference to using emergency flares," explained Seguin. "Don't be afraid to call in if you see an emergency flare because they can check in with us. If it wasn't us, we'd be out there to respond to an emergency."
The exercise on Saturday and Sunday will take place on the river from Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie.
