Page 94 - Journal of Special Operations Medicine - Fall 2016

Urban Shield 2016

Donald Mattison, Captain

he 10th anniversary of Urban Shield brought hun- The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Unit
Tdreds of first responders from the region, state, responds to an attack on a dignitary convoy. Scenario was
country, and overseas to the San Francisco Bay Area based on a powerful bomb attack that blasted through a
for the biggest training event of its kind. The critically convoy of cars carrying the interior minister in Cairo, Egypt,
acclaimed training exercise, started in 2007, was orga- on 5 SEP 2013.
nized by its creator, Alameda County Sheriff-Coroner
Gregory J. Ahern. Urban Shield continues to develop
and prepare a multitude of emergency workers for ter-
rorist attacks and natural disasters.

Urban Shield 2016 was scheduled for the weekend of Photo compliments of Elizabeth Ferrante

September 11, continuing to remember the tragic events
of 2001. Urban Shield was founded on the need to pre-
pare first responders for such horrific events such as
those that occurred on that fateful day and continue
through today. The motto for Urban Shield 2016, “In-
tense Training for Intense Times,” is apropos, with the expand local and area partnerships with public safety
recent incidents in San Bernardino, Orlando, and Dal- agencies and private sector entities including local busi-
las, to name just a few. It is vital we remember the first ness and critical infrastructure partners.
responders who have fallen in service to their communi-
ties, as it is equally important to constantly practice for In 2007, Urban Shield began primarily as a law enforce-
the inevitable future attacks and natural disasters. ment-based training exercise, with 22 scenarios and three
medical check points for 24 agencies. In 2016, there were
The continued need to train for the next “big one,” ei- 32 scenarios and four medical check points for 36 agen-
ther a terrorist attack or a natural disaster, is paramount. cies. Additionally, there were 16 fire scenarios involving
When we look at the recent worldwide terrorist attacks Hazardous Materials (HazMat), Urban Search and Res-
in France, Germany, and the Istanbul, Turkey, airport, cue (US&R), and Maritime responses. There were five
we, as first responders, are constantly reminded of how EOD/Bomb Squad scenarios. There also was a stand-
important it is to train for these types of tragic occur- alone EMS/MCI training scenario. All of the scenarios
rences. For natural disasters, we can look to the January were based on real world events that have occurred in
2016 blizzards in the eastern United States, the ongoing different parts of the globe. Every one of the scenarios
wild fires in California, and the April 16, 2016, earth- was designed to prepare local and regional public safety
quake in Ecuador, which killed more than 650 people. agencies to respond to terrorist attacks, test the physi-
cal abilities of the team members, test and evaluate new
Urban Shield is a Full Scale Exercise (FSE) that is part technologies and equipment, and assess accepted tactics
of the Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) Training and responses of the public safety community.
and Exercise Program funded by the Department of
Homeland Security. Urban Shield was created to im- Working within all of these disciplines are the emer-
prove the preparation and response capabilities of first gency management personnel. The personnel were from
responders within the Bay Area UASI region through all walks of life: local, state, and federal government
realistic scenarios, based on past and present real world agencies, private corporations, community-based orga-
events. Urban Shield also enhances the skills and abili- nizations, local volunteers, and more. They coordinated
ties of those responsible for coordinating and managing scenarios, activates, core capability testing, and OES
large-scale events. Another benefit of Urban Shield is to activations throughout the greater San Francisco Bay

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