About 50 Enbridge employees and contractors, including teams from across Alberta and Saskatchewan, took part in this June 2018 drill, which measured our response to a simulated third-party strike on our Express Canada pipeline.

Enbridge crews used response boats to deploy containment boom, deflector boom and skimmer systems—strengthening our spill control capabilities.

Representatives of regional first response agencies, City of Medicine Hat Water Supply, the National Energy Board and the Metis Nation of Alberta, as well as local Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Robert Wanner, watched Enbridge’s water response activities, quizzed Enbridge response specialists, toured work locations, and were invited to board a response boat for a closer look. Those first response agencies included the Medicine Hat Fire Department, the County of Foremost and the Town of Sedgewick.

While Enbridge focuses heavily on prevention activities like inspection, monitoring and maintenance to keep our pipelines fit for service, we also have robust emergency preparedness and response systems—which we constantly test, review and improve—in the unlikely event of a pipeline incident.

Says Enbridge emergency response co-ordinator Scott RItzer: “This was a good opportunity to showcase our program for these stakeholders who are new to us along the Express line. There seems to be a lot of interest in planning and executing these drills together—which is a huge win for safety.”