MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) announced Friday that officials will be conducting a full-scale emergency response exercise at the Wheaton Metro Station this weekend.
According to a release from WMATA, the exercise by Metro Transit Police Department (MTPD) and Montgomery County emergency responders will be held on Sunday, Feb. 26. It will begin at 8:45 a.m. and is expected to last until 2 p.m.
The full-scale emergency response exercise aims to test the agencies' reactions to a simulated derailment incident at Wheaton Station.
WMATA says the exercise will take place inside the tunnel between Wheaton and Forest Glen. It will simulate real-world conditions and evaluate interagency communication between Metro Transit Police Department, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service, Montgomery County Police and Montgomery County Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security at the Metro station.
According to a tweet from WMATA, Wheaton Station will be closed during the exercise but bus service will be made available. Green Line trains will be single tracking between L'Enfant Plaza and Navy Yard-Ball Park.
In October 2021, nearly 200 Blue Line passengers were on board when a 7000-series car derailed in Arlington. Following the incident, the NTSB led an investigation and uncovered issues with wheels on the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority's 7000-series train cars.
The investigation led to all of the agency's newest series cars being pulled from the tracks to see how widespread the problems were.
A Metro employee was shot and killed and two other people were shot and injured at the Potomac Avenue Metro station in D.C. Wednesday morning.
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