Urban Shield 2008

Last weekend Josh was able to be a part of a program called Urban Shield. The scenario that Josh was @ was where some terrorists had taken two FedEx employees captive. They were inside an abandoned warehouse where the terrorists were producing Ricin.


I was able to attend all day Sunday (0500-1700hrs) and watch the SWAT teams as they entered the building. I was also the gopher for anything anyone needed.

An article from the Contra Costa Times Newspaper describes Urban Shield well - "More than two dozen law enforcement agencies from throughout the state and as far as Boston and New York were evaluated on how they responded to intense emergency situations. The training, which began at 6 a.m. Saturday, runs continuously until 6 a.m. Monday with scenarios set up all over the East Bay and on Treasure Island. Teams had to defuse such scenarios such as a bank robbery, a jail riot, a refinery attack and a high school takeover."

"Instead of real bullets, the tactical teams and the perpetrators used cartridges
filled with colored detergent, similar to paint balls.
Urban Shield is considered the largest homeland security training of its kind in the country. More than 1,700 people participated in or worked at the event, said Sgt. J.D. Nelson, spokesman for the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, which is hosting the exercise in the East Bay.
Teams coming in to each scene were briefed about their assignment. They had to come up with a plan and at the end of exercise, were evaluated on how they did. Scores were kept."
(All photos taken by Aubrey)