Mayor Mark A. Smith announced that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will close the Bayonne Bridge for part of the morning of Sunday, October 14, for an emergency drill. The drill scenario is a head-on collision between a box truck and a passenger vehicle, creating a fully engulfed fire along with cascading accidents on the approach roadways. This drill will require a full closure of the bridge and its pedestrian sidewalk between the hours of 4:30 a.m. and 9:00 am at the Bayonne Bridge on Sunday, October 14. During the hours that the Bayonne Bridge is closed that day, drivers and pedestrians who use the bridge will need to seek alternate routes or change their travel times.

The drill scenario will include approximately 25 accident victims (fifteen volunteers and ten mannequins) requiring varying levels of medical attention, attempting to stress the Port Authority’s response capabilities and those of its mutual-aid partners in New York and New Jersey. The exercise will also further previous efforts to enhance the Port Authority’s response capabilities to “Fire as a Dynamic Load,” while reinforcing overall preparedness for fire response and the handling of significant numbers of accident victims. Participating mutual aid partners include New York City Fire and Police Departments, Bayonne Fire and Police Departments, and McCabe Ambulance, Bayonne’s emergency medical service.

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