Tinley Park Stays Vigilant in Wake of Boston Marathon Attack

Although Monday's explosions at the Boston Marathon were almost a thousand miles away from Tinley Park, the terrorist attack has set the wheels in motion for the village's Emergency Management Agency.

READ: Go to Back Bay Patch for Updates From the Boston Area

The organization provides a support system for Tinley Park's emergency and public safety departments, acting as a hub during disaster and crisis situations. Those events can range from severe weather episodes, such as tornadoes and blizzards, to health epidemics and even terrorist attacks.

Once it became a possibility Monday that the situation in Boston might have repercussions past the East Coast, the Tinley Park EMA's command staff began talking and reviewing its emergency preparedness plan, said agency director Pat Carr on Monday, April 15.

READ: Emergency Preparedness: Get a Glimpse Inside Tinley's 'Bunker'

"We take all of this very seriously and perform all our planning functions," he said.

Over the years, part of that planning has included running drills with emergency crews and the agency's community volunteers that simulate various disaster scenarios, Carr said. And if a crisis were to break out, in the basement of the Tinley Park Public Safety building.

PHOTOS: Drill Prepares Tinley Emergency Crews for Real Disaster

As of late Monday afternoon, there was no threat to the Chicago area, and village offices and departments are under normal operation, Carr said. But he and other Tinley Park public safety officials will still stay vigilant and keep the lines of communication open with other emergency agencies, such as the Cook County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

"We are talking amongst ourselves to make sure everything is in place," Carr said. "We keep track of current events [and] what's going on."

Tinley Park Patch Stories About Area Runners at the Marathon:

• Local Yankee Runners Not Hurt in Boston Marathon Explosions
• Area Runner Wants Justice After Boston Marathon Attack

Boston Marathon Attack Coverage From East Coast Patch Sites:

• Go to Back Bay Patch for Updates From the Boston Area
• Scores Injured by Explosion at Boston Marathon Finish Line 
• Newtown Runners Reportedly 'Safe' Following Boston Tragedy
• Witness: 'All of a Sudden Everyone Turned Around and Was Running in the Opposite Direction'
• PHOTOS: Explosions at Boston Marathon
• Amazing Story of a Nurse Tending to Army Vet When Bomb Went Off

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