The Department of Homeland Security’s science and technology directorate collaborated with the governments of Canada and the U.K. to conduct a trilateral exercise to develop best practices in emergency response efforts. The exercise simulated a hypothetical scenario that involved an infectious pathogen to identify and address gaps in first response and information sharing cpabilities, DHS said Tuesday.
DHS created a team to evaluate the threat and utilized practices under the agency’s Science Advisory Guide for Emergencies tool to respond to the scenario during the demonstration. The results showed optimized two-way communication efforts between subject matter experts and DHS S&T Acting Deputy Undersecretary Andrew Hentz. The agency plans to mature SAGE as a department-wide resource and coordinate with other agencies to augment homeland security capacities.
“Establishing best practices in partnership with our Canadian and UK allies through a program like SAGE is an important part of ensuring that we are always ready to provide the best advice for protecting the homeland,†said Hentz.
