'There will be the sound of gunfire and blasts -- all part of Urban Shield, one of the biggest domestic terrorism drills in the country.' Heavily armed law enforcement teams will scatter across the Bay Area this weekend --Twenty-seven crack teams will compete in the Urban Shield exercise

23 Oct 20 09

Armed officers in full battle gear will be scattered throughout the Bay Area this weekend, rescuing hostages, fighting bank robbers and quelling terrorism at the Oakland Airport, Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, the NASA Ames Research Center and 22 other high profile sites. There will be the sound of gunfire and blasts -- all part of Urban Shield, one of the biggest domestic terrorism drills in the country. The $1 million, two-day event begins Saturday and will test the training of 27 crack teams from throughout the state, elsewhere in the country and the world. For the first time in the three-year history of the Alameda County Sheriff's Department-sponsored exercise, there will be a foreign team of officers taking part and international observers. An eight-member team representing the French National Police's Research, Assistance, Intervention, and Dissuasion unit will compete.


http://www.contracostatimes.com/ci_13620723



25 teams practice emergency response --Elite tactical teams from across Bay Area in Urban Shield training exercise

23 Oct 2009 (CA)

It is the largest tactical exercise in the nation. Twenty-five local teams, including one from Boston and one from France, will deploy across the Bay Area on Saturday to train in 25 different scenarios from sniper attacks to hostage situations. "We make them as realistic as possible. They'll have a hijack situation and that scenario will take place at the Oakland Airport on an airplane," says Alameda County Sgt. J.D. Nelson.

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=n...&id=7080414