DC area agencies to conduct mass rescue exercise off National Harbor

The Coast Guard and about a dozen other federal, state, and local agencies are participating in a mass rescue exercise Tuesday, conducting mock rescues of people in the water from a staged boating incident near the National Harbor, the USCG said in its news release.

“No single agency can respond to a large-scale mass rescue,” said Lt. Cmdr. Grant Johnson, the coordinator for the exercise from Coast Guard Sector Maryland-National Capital Region. “Due to the number of people and different complexities that arise in these types of incidents, multiple agencies all respond at once, which is why opportunities to train together are important.”

The exercise is aimed to maintain efficient coordination between different agencies in the event of a large-scale emergency. Water taxis supplied by Entertainment Cruises will be used for the exercise, and students from George Washington University will be acting as the participants.