CBS4 Exclusive: Officers Participate In Terror Attack Drill On Miami Dinner Cruise
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – With confirmation that the San Bernardino attack is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, it's even more crucial that police all over the country are prepared to deal with mass shootings.
In South Florida, there are far more potential targets than others places. They're miles of coastline filled with tourists on sightseeing boats.
On Friday, officers from Venice, Fla., as well as Guam and the Cayman Islands, took part in a simulated terrorist attack on a Biscayne Bay dinner cruise.
"We got a call from the boat captain, a request for help they got several injured, there are terrorist aboard the boat actively shooting," said Mike Tucker from Tactical Advantage Consultants as he explained the drill.
When officers approached, they were greeted with gunfire, but made their way in.
Their first priority was to sweep the ship and take out the terrorists. The injured had to wait until the threat was gone. Two teams of officers fanned out to clear the ship.
After the gunmen are taken out, officers were able to concentrate on helping the injured – trying to keep them alive until paramedics got there.
In this drill, four terrorists were shot and killed – but not before the gunmen shot four people, three of them survived.
Officers who took part in the drill said they'd give their own lives to save others.
"I would go as far as it takes, to make sure that that person, including myself, gets back out of the danger and somewhere protected," said Paul Joyce, a trainee Marine officer from Venice. "And if I had to take a bullet to protect somebody, that's what I would do."
It's a frightening scenario where innocent tourists were attacked, but one Tucker said is very real.
"Right now the terrorist attacks are the soft targets, areas where there aren't a lot of law enforcement but large amounts of people, areas that they can get in, shoot and get out," he said.
This marine simulation training from Tactical Advantage Consultants is not just being done in Miami. It will also be conducted in Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos.