Peoria, IL — The U.S. Postal Service National Preparedness group, in cooperation with local first responders and public health officials, will conduct an evacuation drill and Biohazard Detection System response exercise as part of its ongoing efforts to safeguard communities, employees and test its emergency preparedness plans.

The response exercise activities will begin at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 8th at the Peoria Processing and Distribution Center located at 95 East State Street in Peoria IL.  The exercise will include participation from local, state and federal agencies including: Peoria Police Department, Peoria Fire Department, US Postal Inspection Service, Peoria City/County Health Dept., Peoria Office of Emergency Management, Salvation Army of Peoria and the FBI.

Portions of the facility site will be unavailable between 3-4 p.m.  Retail window operations will remain open and will provide service to customers during this time.

The exercise is only a drill.  These events are scheduled on an annual basis to ensure emergency preparedness.

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A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. We’re everywhere so you can be anywhere: www.uspseverywhere.com. With 32,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, usps.com, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $67 billion and delivers nearly 40 percent of the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 29th in the 2010 Fortune 500. Black Enterprise and Hispanic Business magazines ranked the Postal Service as a leader in workforce diversity. The Postal Service has been named the Most Trusted Government Agency six consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute.