On Thursday 30th and Friday 31st January 2025, a large-scale training exercise took place at Poole Port to test the response of emergency services to a major terrorism incident.
The exercise involved:
- Dorset Police
- Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Resuce Service
- South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
- Fire and Rescue Services from Hampshire & Isle of Wight, and Devon and Somerset
- Dorset Prepared
The emergency services were also support by voluntary agencies and educational establishments.
The events began with a virtual exercise testing the response of Dorset Police’s Force Command Centre, and then transitioned into a live exercise within Poole Port allowing all agencies to exercise their emergency plans and joint working.
Superintendent Stu Pitman, of Dorset Police, said: “A major incident is often extremely fast-paced and complex, and thankfully not something we regularly experience in Dorset, so replicating an incident of this scale provides an incredibly invaluable opportunity for everyone to take their plans and test them in a real-life scenario”
Lewis Connell, Emergency Preparedness Resilience and Response Officer for Dorset, at the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, said: “In the event of a major incident, we have clear processes and plans in place to help protect and care for our communities.
“Being able to test and exercise our response plans allows us to increase our preparedness for any major incident. It also provides an excellent opportunity to work alongside other emergency services and partner organisations.”
Area Manager Jason Moncrieff, from Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “A lot of people were involved in planning and managing this exercise, and my thanks go to them for delivering such a valuable experience for everyone who took part.
“It is vital that we practice multi-agency responses to these types of large-scale incidents, so we all have the assurance of knowing how we will need to work together, should the worst happen.”
