It was a fake terrorist attack, but the training for local first responders was real

When crews descended on LECOM Park Wednesday morning, it was an elaborate dress rehearsal carefully coordinated to play out as if a terrorist attack were unfolding in Bradenton.

Bomb squads, hazardous material crews, paramedics, police, firefighters and SWAT team members from agencies across the county all went through the largest multi-agency training in county history at LECOM Park. Their trucks lined 17th Avenue West.

The exercise, named “Operation Inshore Slam,” was created to simulate a terrorist attack in Bradenton and to see how first responders would handle the scenario — and give them a chance to practice.

“We’re trying to instill proactiveness in our society to be on the lookout for things that could be happening around us that could cause our citizens harm. Drills like this flex the system so we can practice this in a real-time real-life environment,” Southern Manatee Fire Rescue Captain Mike Bloski said.

The drill in Bradenton took place less than 24 hours after a man drove a truck through a bicycle lane in New York, killing at least eight and injuring 12. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called the incident “a cowardly act of terror.”

In light of Tuesday’s attack and Wednesday’s training, Bloski said families should have a plan when they go out to be able to get together in a safe location if an event were to occur.

Rich Cigich, a nursing student at Keiser University who volunteered to act as a victim in Wednesday’s training exercise, echoed Bloski’s call to the public to be vigilant and proactive after the incident in New York.

“We have to be aware at all times when you’re in public. These things could possibly happen, it’s unfortunate, but it could happen,” Cigich said. “So you just keep your eyes up and keep your head up.”

There have been previous multi-agency drills in Bradenton, but none since 2012, Bloski said. Wednesday’s exercise had about 220 first responders from 20 agencies participate. It took nearly 11 months to plan.

Bloski said their goal is to have large response drills about every two years.

For the drill Wednesday, two people arrived at LECOM PARK in a truck and released orange smoke — meant to simulate a chemical agent — into the air before taking off into the crowd. One of the people had a device strapped to their chest.

Volunteers acting as victims repeatedly ran out of the stadium gates wearing tags labeling them as victims, screaming for help. Those wearing tags were assisted by paramedics as they arrived at the scene. Some were loaded into ambulances and taken to nearby hospitals, all as part of the drill.

Police inside the stadium were able to “shoot down” the suspect with the device while the second suspect hid in the clubhouse until police were able to remove the person.

The bomb squad arrived inside the park to destroy the mock device previously strapped to the suspect’s chest. A loud boom signaled the artificial device’s demise. The hazardous materials team worked to contain the fabricated chemical inside the truck.

All the while, victim actors were running out of LECOM Park in groups, some fell to the ground to feign injuries. They were triaged and attended to by EMTs.

Cigich said it was an opportunity to see first responders in action.

“That’s what we got to see today, be part of the process from the other end. Usually we see patients once they come to the hospital. We got to see them on the way today,” he said.

Though they were told they were acting and would be safe in the scenario, the gravity of the role gripped Cigich.

“This is stuff that could happen, so it was kind of surreal and you snap into focus,” Cigich said. “When you hear a police officer yell ‘get down’ we all started running. We grabbed each others’ hands and started running. It was real to us.”

Bloski said he was pleased with how the exercise went. Evaluators who watched the morning’s events unfold will provide Bloski feedback on the different response areas and what they could do to improve.

“Drills like this really do show that our community is prepared for these types of events that happen,” Bloski said. “Reinforcing those skills we learn on the fire level, EMS level, police level, they really do show that we’re tying the system together so we can face a threat.”

This story was originally published November 1, 2017 at 1:22 PM with the headline "It was a fake terrorist attack, but the training for local first responders was real."