Rain dampens terrorism drill staged at PNC Park

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Intermittent showers didn't change the plans that Mike Belluomini and three buddies made for Saturday.
"It's not every day you get to participate in a mass evacuation," said Belluomini, 18, of Mount Lebanon.
But the rain apparently kept enough folks at home that fewer than 7,000 showed up by 11 a.m. for the $750,000 terrorism response drill organized by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at PNC Park, officials said.
Organizers were hoping that an offer of two free Pittsburgh Pirates tickets, a souvenir replica of the park, and an American Red Cross first aid kit for each volunteer -- as well as a free concert by three classic hometown rockers -- would draw upward of 14,000 people. But officials were confident that participating emergency crews learned a valuable lesson anyway.
"Everybody has to be vigilant. Everybody has to be prepared. It can happen in our most rural areas, it can happen in our most urban areas," said Roland Mertz, the deputy director for the state's Office of Homeland Security.
Emergency crews will be critiqued in a report to be prepared on the drill in the coming weeks.