SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - Salt Lake police and rescue agencies responded to simulated incidents on Sunday. They were training on how to keep us safe.
It started just after sunrise. Authorities were informed of a fast-moving terrorist attack on TRAX. Their job was to help save the innocent bystanders.
Chief Chris Burbank of Salt Lake Police said, "We've got an incident where we have an explosive device on a TRAX train. We've got a shooter. And so this is a terrorist incident."
With mass casualties, a bomb planted in the area, and attackers taking hostages on the train, police and firefighters moved in.
"There will be some people who fall injured in this scenario," said Burbank.
While most involved in the drill knew exactly what was going on, some remained completely unaware of what was taking place.
"Not everyone who's involved in this knows the full extent of what's taking place right now," said Burbank.
Key players in the staged drama, such as dispatchers in the Communications Nerve Center, were kept in the dark right up until the incident began. To them, everything was real.
The dispatchers were in charge of coordinating and deploying personnel from more than a dozen agencies to save the citizens caught in what they thought was an act of terrorism.
"It's an opportunity to test how we respond to these things and how we coordinate, which is really important because nothing happens in this valley now that we don't bring in multiple agencies to help and assist," said Burbank.
Sunday's drill was the result of one year of planning and coordinating between Salt Lake County public safety agencies. They hope the drill will help them in future incidents.
Lt. Rich Brede of Salt Lake Police said, "We want to be in a situation where we've been there before. And this is about as close as we get to it."
