Emergency exercise scheduled this week for UF campus

Students, faculty, staff, and visitors at the University of Florida may see numerous personnel and vehicles from area law enforcement, fire rescue, and other first-responder agencies on campus this week as part of an emergency training exercise.

In addition, news media and others who monitor public safety scanners should be aware they may hear radio traffic related to the exercise on those days and should not mistake it for an actual emergency.

“This will all be part of the exercise, and we want to make the campus aware so that no one is concerned,” said Kenneth Allen, director of UF’s Department of Emergency Management. The exercise was scheduled between academic summer semesters to minimize any impacts. 

The Gator Chomp Exercise will be conducted on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Wednesday’s activities will be held in and around Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. On Thursday, the exercise will be conducted around Leigh Hall.

The exercise is being coordinated by the Department of Emergency Management and the UF Police Department. About 100 personnel will participate representing agencies and groups including the Florida National Guard’s 44th Weapons of Mass Destruction-Civil Support Team, the FBI, Gainesville Fire Rescue, the Gainesville Police Department, the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, Alachua County Fire Rescue, UF Health Shands Hospital, and UF Environmental Health & Safety.