Port of Redwood City conducts full scale emergency preparedness exercise and announces Port Securit

The Port of Redwood City facilitated its annual full scale emergency preparedness exercise on Thursday, Oct. 13. The Port’s strategic location allows the agency to serve the Silicon Valley region and support emergency preparedness and response.

This year’s event focused on active shooter, hostage aboard a vessel and building collapse exercises that included an emergency operations center and field play response simulation with over 130 players. Port Commissioners and staff were joined by safety and security partners including City of Redwood City Police, Fire and Communications Departments, Woodside Fire Protection District, Central County Fire Department, Menlo Park Fire Protection District and members of FEMA Task Force 3 for the half-day exercise. Due to the pandemic, this year’s full scale exercise was the first operation since 2019.

The Port of Redwood City is designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a Federal Staging Area (FSA) for the South San Francisco Bay region. The FSA designation provides the case of an emergency, the Port of Redwood City is situated perfectly to keep the movement of goods, people and emergency resources flowing in the South Bay Area. We are honored to work with federal, state and local partners on safety and security.

Port Security Grant Program

The Port of Redwood City is honored to announce its receipt of a $952,637 grant in the 2022 Port Security Grant Program, from the Department of Homeland Security. The award is part of the annual Port Security Grant Program (PSGP), which is designed to protect critical port infrastructure from threats that could impact public safety, supply chain disruption, cyber threats or other security challenges.

This year’s allocations will further the Port’s operational efficiencies, continue to enhance cyber security measures and provide support to the region during natural disasters. Since 2018, the Port has been awarded nearly $6 million in PSGP funding to further strengthen our resources and infrastructure. These grants demonstrate federal confidence in our Port and we are honored to continue receiving funding through this competitive process.

Across the nation, more than $100 million is being allocated to port authorities, plus supporting entities for this year’s PSGP.

“This grant supports the Port’s FEMA designation as a FSA and our leadership role in regional emergency preparedness and disaster recovery,” shared Port of Redwood City Executive Director Kristine A. Zortman. “We look forward to continuing to work with local partners on safety and security through ongoing collaboration and annual full scale emergency exercises.”