Up to 90 fire departments from four states responded to a tornado disaster drill in three staging areas in Chicagoland. Convoys of Task Forces from MABAS divisions that consisted of a fire chief, a ladder truck, a rescue squad, three ambulances and three fire engines were seen traversing roadways in Chicagoland. One such task force convoy from MABAS Division 8, which included fire-rescue equipment from Rockford, Loves Park, Rockton, and Lifeline Ambulance, was on the move eastbound on Palatine Road at about 9:30 a.m. Thursday. Presumably the equipment was headed for a staging area in Glenview at a site on the former Glenview Naval Air Station. The other staging areas were located at Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates and a location in Tinley Park. Fire departments from Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan were present at various staging areas along with fire departments from Illinois.
A Huey helicopter also made several passes from East-to-West and West-to-East Thursday morning. The helicopter was a dark military green and had a white square and a bold red cross at the bottom of the cabin.
The disaster drill was coordinated with a convention at McCormick Place conducted by Fire-Rescue International. A live video feed showed some of the activity where actions were critiqued and studied. The seminar is being held August 24-28, 2010. Thousands of firefighters from around the world are expected to attend the event at McCormick Place. U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano is attending the conference, as well as Steven Pasquale — star of FX Network television drama ‘Rescue Me’ that portrays the professional and personal lives of a group of New York City firefighters in the fictional FDNY Ladder 62/Engine 99 firehouse.