US, Mexico Agencies Hold Binational Drill To Prepare For Disaster

More than 20 agencies from the U-S and Mexico met in El Paso Thursday for what is believed to be the first binational drill of its kind in the Sun City.

They worked on plans for any emergencies along the border.

“A border patrol helicopter apparently crashed,” said a Border Patrol agent taking part in a simulation exercise.

But what if that actually happened along the border, or, “People are saying they were grenades or that maybe it was an explosion a car bomb,” another Border Patrol agent could be heard saying as part of a hypothetical scenario.

But the scenarios are not that far-fetched, according to local officials.

“We’ve all seen the increase in violence and how it affects both sides of the border,” said Michael Przybyl, Deputy Chief, U.S. Border Patrol El Paso sector.

Now, because of all the violence, these agents are meeting now, to create a plan for any problems in the future.

The agencies split into separate rooms and worked on procedures already in place.

“In these critical times, where the violence has increased exponentially, communication is very important,” said Przybyl.

Such as in last Saturday’s shootout, where at least one bullet flew across the border and hit a building at UTEP.

Border Patrol and El Paso Police decided to shut down Paisano drive.

“It demonstrated our ability to respond to such a thing, we had a very quick response along with the El Paso Police,” said Przybyl.

And with no end in sight to the violence across and along our border, “You can’t just rest on your laurels, you know we did a pretty good job on Saturday, its never good enough,” said Przybyl.