If you see a lot of police cars, fire engines, ambulances, and other emergency personnel at Manteca High School next week, don’t fret — it’s just a training exercise.
According to the Manteca Police Department, the agency will be conducting a weeklong mass casualty incident training session at Manteca’s namesake high school from July 18 through July 22.
The event will be closed to the public.
When asked about what residents can expect if they’re in the vicinity, Manteca Police spokesman Greg Beall said that the scene may be loud at times with lots of emergency personnel on site – necessitating the need to inform the public about the nature of the training exercise in advance.
Mass casualty incident training typically involves all of the stakeholders that would be involved in responding to a scene with a large number of casualties – the police who secure the scene, the firefighters and EMS personnel who treat the victims, and sometimes even area hospitals.
While these training sessions occur annually, they take on a tighter focus this year in the wake of several mass shootings including the one at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas – where an 18-year-old shooter killed 19 children and two teachers. The response by law enforcement – who reportedly waited more than an hour to attempt to enter the room where the shooter was holed up – has become a national story in recent weeks.
Training sessions like the one that will occur next week typically prompt law enforcement with a variety of scenarios to allow them to work though the split-second decisions that will need to be made in the face of an unfolding tragedy – with some even using actors as victims to make the situation as realistic as possible.
The Manteca Police Department uses San Joaquin County’s active shooter protocol for trainings like the one next week so that any officer that arrives on scene to render assistance can seamlessly fit into another agency’s response plan.
To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.
