In the wake of the recent terror attacks in Paris and an assault at a Planned Parenthood in Colorado, the Nassau County Police Department staged anti-terror drills at New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury and Nassau Community College in Garden City on Saturday.
Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano said the drills “were an evaluation of initial response, resource deployment, incident command/management, communication coordination, inter-agency coordination, intelligence integration, medical response and initial investigative actions.”
“These anti-terror drills are essential, especially in the times we live in, to prepare our first responders to deal with today’s changing world,” Mangano said. “The Nassau County Police Department will review the lessons learned from these anti-terror drills to help improve public safety.
Mangano said while anti-terror drills are part of routine training for Nassau County police officers, the drills staged on Saturday took into account situations the recent terror attacks in Paris with attacks taking place simultaneously at different locations and attackers wearing explosive devices.
The Nassau County Police Department also consistently switches venues when training officers, Mangano said.
“The department has trained at many other buildings, which include but are not limited to Roosevelt Field Mall, Green Acres Mall, libraries and governmental buildings,” he said. “Utilizing different facilities provides our officers different environments to train and learn. In addition, it allows them to become familiar with the many facilities throughout the county which is crucial in an emergency situation.”
Exercises conducted during the drill included “a multi-agency response,” which included Nassau County Police Department’s third and second precincts, Bureau of Special Operations, Emergency Services Unit, Emergency Ambulance Bureau, K9, Aviation, Homeland Security Unit, third, second and Arson Bomb Detective Squads and the Intelligence Unit, a press release from Mangano’s office said.
The Garden City Police Department, the Hempstead Police Department, the Old Westbury Police Department, the Old Brookville Police Department, New York State Police and the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management also participated in the exercise, the release said.
A $40,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was given to the Nassau County Police Department to pay for the exercise, the release said.
Mangano said the Nassau County Police will incorporate the outcomes of the drill into future training and drills.
Acting Police Commissioner Thomas Krumpter echoed Mangano’s sentiment.
“There are always take-aways, which we utilize to push into training exercises such as this to make sure our law enforcement officers are the most prepared anywhere,” he said.
Nassau County, Mangano said, “prides itself on its ability to help maintain one of the lowest crime rates in the nation.”
“My administration continues to provide officers with the training, drills and resources they need to successfully combat crime,” he said. “I thank everyone who participated in the drill.”
