Vacant Burbank buildings come in handy for police and firefighter training
With the situation neutralized, a stream of LAPD SWAT officers exit a vacant building on the 3400 block of Alameda Avenue in Burbank where the Los Angeles Police Department’s SWAT officers practiced tactic exercises on Thursday, October 23, 2015. The exercise, which included explosions and flash-bang detonations, were conducted throughout the morning and into the afternoon.
Dozens of police officers and firefighters over the last several months have been breaking through doors, rescuing hostages and practicing crisis negotiations at a number of soon-to-be demolished properties in Burbank’s Media District.
Before construction crews tear down blocks of apartment buildings, single-family homes, office buildings and a church to make way for Talaria at Burbank, a 241-unit luxury apartment complex on top of a Whole Foods market, local law enforcement and fire agencies have been using the now-vacant buildings for training.
Police and fire officials said it’s a unique opportunity for agencies accustomed to training in the same buildings over and over.
“For us to be able to utilize realistic settings is a big deal,” said Los Angeles Police Officer Howard Ng, who was one of roughly 30 Los Angeles Special Weapons and Tactics Unit officers who trained at the site — free of charge — over the last several weeks. Officers practiced door breaching, as well as exercises simulating searches for armed suspects and hostage rescues.
“We probably could’ve spent a whole month to two months in there,” Ng said.
Burbank’s SWAT team also trained twice this month, practicing breaching exercises and tactical responses to barricaded suspects and hostage situations.
“It’s a built-up little area which affords a lot more realism than, say, the one structure they have at the range that they train on all the time,” said Burbank Police Capt. Denis Cremins, adding that different room configurations and surroundings are much more consistent with an actual call-out. “The closer you practice to the real thing, the better you’re going to perform in a real scenario.”
Developer Michael Cusumano said he’s offered similar training opportunities in the past on different properties slated for demolition.
“It’s not very often you get multiple blocks of vacant buildings,” Cusumano said. “We feel it’s a part of our community obligation to cooperate with those agencies whenever we can. If we can do anything that provides them better training opportunities, then we’re happy to do it.”
Once crews remove the asbestos from the properties, Burbank firefighters — who have done some training at the site — will go back to practice more invasive exercises, including practicing forcible entry by cutting through walls, and using charged hose lines while smoke machines simulate poor visibility.
“It’s as real-life as you could get,” said Burbank Fire Chief Tom Lenahan. “We are always looking for opportunities like this.”
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Alene Tchekmedyian, alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com
Twitter: @atcheck