BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - AS part of the activities of this year’s Exercise Tradewinds, an intricate simulation exercise was conducted today (Jun. 3) at Her Majesty’s Prison (HMP).
This exercise had attracted a large number of onlookers who, after observing a fire tender, Emergency Medical Services personnel and contingents of the Federation’s security forces, were of the view that something drastic had taken place at the penal institution.
Relief however came to them after learning that it was a drill; an exercise organised by the planning committee of Tradewinds 2015 to assess the local body’s reaction to an emergency situation.
SKNVibes understands that the simulation exercise involved an invented explosion at HMP which resulted in a collapsed interior wall.
The exercise saw participation from a number of first response personnel, including the Emergency Medical Services, both the Fire Department and the Rescue Services legs of the St. Kitts and Nevis Fire and Rescue Services Department and the Police Force’s K9 Unit, among others.
The Rescue Services and K9 Unit reportedly conducted several searches of the compound for individuals who were unaccounted for, resulting in an undisclosed number of them being located and handed over to the EMS Unit.
Speaking to one of the many onlookers, Janet (not her real name) explained that she thought there was a fire and a rebellion of prisoners at the prison, similar to the fire in which an officer was badly burnt a few weeks ago and also when there was a riot in the prison over five years ago.
She however breathed a sigh of relief after learning that it was a simulation exercise.
To accommodate the occasion, vehicular access to surrounding and nearby roads was restricted.
Information posted on the National Emergency Management Agency’s (NEMA) Facebook page indicated that also as part of the simulation exercise, an escape had taken place after the wall had collapsed and a fictitious hurricane had caused damage to several facilities across the Federation.
As another prong of the exercise, “The scenario is to be played out as the escaped prisoners travel from St. Kitts to Nevis by fishing boat, where response coordination will continue there, led by Nevis security agencies and the NDMD (National Disaster Management Department),” the National Emergency Management Agency’s (NEMA) Facebook page further explained.
These events form part of the first phase of Exercise Tradewinds, which includes Maritime and Land Operations to take place in the Federation from May 31 to June 9.
