Officers train to prevent terrorism

By Denise Dick

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security covered the costs of training, travel and accommodations.

BOARDMAN — Seven township police officers spent five days learning how to prevent and address potential terrorist acts.

Sgt. Mike Hughes and patrolmen Tim Hughes, John Gocala, Mike Sweeney, Mike Dado, Phil Merlo and Ben Switka are scheduled to return today from training at a U.S. Department of Homeland Security school in Playas, N.M.

“It’s a really good class,” Mike Hughes said. “For us, they trained us as a tactical team, teaching us how to respond to incidents, and they showed us some new techniques,” Mike Hughes said.

It focused on scenarios of people intent on causing harm to large groups of people such as in a school.

Sessions also included the effects of hypothetical incidents involving explosives.

Chief Jack Nichols said Homeland Security covered all costs of the training, travel and accommodations. Any overtime incurred because of the officers’ absence was covered with forfeiture funds awarded to the township as a result of investigations.

The class included about 60 law- enforcement officers from across the country.

Training for the township officers included both classroom work and exercises designed to simulate particular scenarios, the sergeant said.

One particular technique targeted the use of explosives to gain entry into a structure.

Homeland Security also bought several homes in the New Mexico community for officers to use in training exercises. They learned the extent of damage that could be caused based on the type and amount of an explosive used.

“They showed us how much damage could be done with a car bomb and if someone had a bomb in a vest, like a suicide bomber,” Hughes said.

Other sessions keyed in on prevention including intelligence gathering and hostage negotiation.

If police receive information, for example, about a plot to cause harm by a particular person or group, they would begin gathering intelligence about that person or group to determine whether the information were accurate and whether the person or group is a threat, Hughes said.

If the information deemed accurate and the threat legitimate, the next step would be to take action to thwart the plan.

The seven receiving the training are to share the information they gained with the remainder of the department.

Nichols said that every other year the department uses a school building while school is out of session to conduct active shooter training exercises. Hughes is expected to lead that next session based on what the team gleaned on the trip.

denise_dick@vindy.com