Police armed attack drill sends temple monks fleeing

Kindergarten evacuated, emergency response excercise employs realistic scenario Young monks flee Wat Burapha, unaware it was only a simulated attack by an armed intruder, part of a police training exercise. (Photos: Prasit Tungprasert) NAKHON RATCHASIMA - Monks and novices fled from a temple in terror and hundreds of children were hurredly evacuated from a kindergarten as police staged an unannounced emergency response drill simulating an armed intruder on Monday.The exercise employed a realistic scenario, with officers and civilians at the locations not initially informed that it was a drill. Events unfolded as they would in a real emergency, beginning with a report of a masked man carrying a long barrelled gun entering Wat Burapha. As monks and novices fled the temple, seeking shelter, police were dispatched to the scene after receiving the simulated emergency call. (continues below) Novice monks hide from the simulated attacker. (Photo: Prasit Tungprasert) Pol Col Sirichai Srichaiyapanya, superintendent of Muang Nakhon Ratchasima police, ordered Pol Lt Col Yutthaphong Khokhunthot, deputy superintendent for crime prevention and suppression, to lead patrol officers and a six man tactical team to the scene to contain the situation and locate the suspect. As they moved in to secure the area, the simulated suspect left the temple and headed towards Ban Khun Nuu Kindergarten, opposite the temple. The situation then became critical. There were hundreds of young children on the premises. Police secured the school and began evacuating the children and staff, while the six man team pursued the suspect inside the premises. The exercise continued until the tactical team eventually simulated using firearms to neutralise the simulated attacker inside the school. (continues below) The six man tactical team is deployed to control the situation. (Photo: Prasit Tungprasert) The simulated attacker being caught by the police. (Photo: Prasit Tungprasert) Only after the scenario had concluded was it revealed that the entire incident had been a drill. The surprise exercise was designed to test how police, schools and members of the public would respond to an armed attack without advance warning. The drill covered the full emergency response, from receiving the initial report and assessing the situation to securing the area, evacuating civilians and children, and deploying the six man team to stop the attacker. The exercise was in line with the Royal Thai Police policy of strengthening preparedness for armed attacks in public places, particularly schools and religious institutions where large numbers of people and children may be present, a spokesman said. It also aimed to familiarise the public with the “Run, Hide, Fight” principle, which encourages people to flee when possible, hide when escape is not possible, and fight back as a last resort when confronted by an armed attacker. Police talk to monks of Wat Burapha. (Photo: Prasit Tungprasert)