Naval Air Station Whiting Field security force personnel and members of the Milton Police Department responded to calls of an active shooter at Whiting Pines Apartments Wednesday afternoon. The shooter killed two office workers before responding police took him out. The guns were fake, but the training was a real test of the two organizations’ ability to work together to resolve a threat. It was part of the annual Solid Curtain/Citadel Shield, the Anti-Terrorism/Force Protection exercise occurring on naval installations across the country.
After waiting for the resolution of a real 911 emergency call, the exercise began after noon with shots fired (prerecorded explosive sounds) inside the housing complex’s office building. MPD responded first, exiting the office and finding the shooter aiming at a civilian. When the opportunity came, officers (shouting “bang”) took him down. Shortly thereafter, Whiting Field officers arrived on scene and worked with MPD to secure the perimeter.
Two MPD officers were involved in the training exercise with three playing response from Whiting Field. Eight Whiting members added to the total for role-playing and 19 members performed the evaluations. MPD and NASWF officials noted a real situation like this would see numerous units on scene.
Milton Police Captain David Cox said this was the first time the Milton police worked with the Navy on a training exercise of this caliber. The consensus was the exercise went well despite some glitches, he said, and hopes the Navy invites the police to train with them again in the future.
Don Gaines, a training officer during the event, agreed the exercise was a success and said “You don’t want it perfect…to see the areas that need work.” He said during last June’s exercise, Whiting Field officers trained with SWAT, LifeFlight, and Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office members. Gaines said of the MPD, “It was great to work with a sister agency.”
During a post-exercise discussion, officials talked about jurisdiction noting the first agency on scene would take point and give direction to those who followed. While MPD responded first in this scenario, Gaines said there could be Whiting Field officers at the nearby Naval Outlying Field who may respond to the call first and may then have to direct arriving police. Gaines noted Whiting Field security officers have their initial training with non military law enforcement so the practices of both are similar.
Sergeant Brian Groenenboom, lead officer with the MPD during the exercise said, “The purpose is to stop the threat. Everything else is secondary.” In passing, Groenenboom said, “Hopefully we’ll never have to deal with it, but in the meantime,” and the naval officer walking with him finished, “It doesn’t hurt to be ready for it.”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Neutralizing the threat: Navy, Milton Police Department test response skills