Boston University officials will conduct tests on emergency responses at the National Emerging Infectious Disease Laboratories on the morning of June 12, officials said.
The drill will take place at NEIDL’s facilities at 650 Albany Street at 9 a.m. Wednesday and will simulate a full-scale emergency security incident, according to a NEIDL press release.
“We create scenarios and drill regularly to make sure that our response techniques are appropriate and that we can learn from our responses and tweak them,” said NEIDL spokeswoman Ellen Berlin. “It’s so that we can have the most appropriate response to all different kinds of scenarios.”
NEIDL staff and researchers and officials from the BU Public Safety Department and from the Boston Public Health Commission will participate in the exercise, according to the release. Boston Emergency Medical Services, the Boston Police Department and Boston Fire Department officials offiwill also be involved.
Although the drill will have no effect on traffic in surrounding areas, emergency response vehicles will be parked at 650 Albany St., the release stated.
If approved, officials will conduct research on biosafety Level 3 and Level 4 pathogens and diseases, including SARS, 1918 H1N1 influenza and Ebola. Officials at the NEIDL currently conduct biosafety Level 2 research.
“At each level, there’s increased protection for the researchers that they call personal protective equipment as well as different techniques that are used and equipment that is used for safety issues,” Berlin said. “The number increases as the severity of what being studied increases.”
The drill set for June 12 is part of NEIDL officials’ safety and training program for laboratory faculty and response officials, the release stated.
“The drills are part of what we do throughout the organization [NEIDL], throughout the whole medical campus, and in this facility as well,” Berlin said.
The facility was constructed over four years ago, but complete opening has been delayed by legal scrutiny based on community concerns about the nature of the research and potential threats to the surrounding community.
In January, the National Institutes of Health released a final risk assessment that found the biolab to pose a minimal risk to the area.
In April, opposition members protested court proceedings in the case Allen v. NIH, in which prosecutors challenged that the assessment did not properly consider alternatives or the environmental impact of the lab.
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