Red Line Subway Evacuation Drill Planned for Saturday

CAMBRIDGE, MA — The Mass. Bay Transit Authority is planning to conduct an emergency response exercise at the Red Line's Alewife Station this Saturday, starting around 9 a.m.

According to the Cambridge Police Department, "The exercise is designed to establish a learning environment for public safety officials to exercise emergency response plans, policies, and procedures as they pertain to a smoke incident inside a subway tunnel and station."

Neighbors should be aware that the activity, while scheduled to last from 9 a.m. through noon, will begin to pick up around the station starting at 7 a.m. Saturday.

The exercise was scheduled prior to Wednesday's evacuation incident on the Orange Line at the MBTA's Back Bay station. An overheated motor sparked a fire in the tunnel, resulting in smoke that forced riders from the train car. Video showed some riders breaking through windows to escape and officials prying open train doors, while other riders orderly exited single-file, covering their mouths and noses against the smoke.

You can read the full story from Wednesday here.

You can learn more about the planned Red Line exercise from the Cambridge Police Department here.

Image via MBTA