You may see some activity on a Tuesday morning soon that looks like you need to call 911, but if it’s on River Street in Benton, it might be just a drill.
The Saline County Office of Emergency Management will be conducting a full-scale Active Shooter Exercise in conjunction with the police and fire departments from Bryant and Benton, Saline County Sheriff’s Office, and Pafford EMS.
The exercise will take place on the morning of August 9, 2022 on the former UALR-Benton campus and should be completed by noon. The campus (including portions of River and Smith Street) will be closed off by Law Enforcement Officers in order to provide a secure exercise location for response personnel. Primary focuses for the exercise will be communication, decision making, and operating as a unified command between various agencies during a critical incident.
Roleplayers will be used to simulate real-world conditions in order to test emergency response capabilities. The public may hear sirens as well as blank rounds or other stimuli as part of that exercise.