The Emery County Sheriff’s Office (ECSO) along with the Emergency Management Team, both under the direction of Captain Kyle Ekker, recently completed a multi-day, full-scale exercise near Green River called Operation Pirate’s Revenge. The training took place on June 3 running for three days and included multiple agencies from the surrounding counties and throughout Utah.

The first day included instruction on railcar hazardous materials response which was presented by Union Pacific Railroad Hazmat.

Day two included a Chemical Suicide Briefing for first responders presented by the UTARNG 85th Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team. Also assisting with the training was Central Utah Water Conservancy District who gave an overview of a recent butane tanker spill into Deer Creek Reservoir. With the help of the Utah DPS helicopter and Utah State Parks boat, participants then exercised retrieving hazardous material barrels from the Green River.

On the final day of training in a canyon approximately 25 miles downstream the day’s exercise was filled with a technical rope rescue along with the State DPS helicopter skid loads and Black Hawk helicopter hoists for military personnel. It was the 211th Aviation Regiment who provided Black Hawk support and flew reconnaissance in a Lakota helicopter. The technical rope rescue assistance was given by Ken Eley of Black Dragon Rescue Systems, with support from Emery County Search and Rescue Rope Rescue Team. During training, temperatures reached 90 plus degrees on the slick rock and with unforgiving terrain, along with a lot of moving parts it defiantly made for a challenging exercise environment. Overall the training was strenuous and very informative for the participants.

The Emery County Sheriff’s Office along with the Emergency Management Team would like to thank all the agencies and individuals that made Operation Pirate’s Revenge training a huge success.