An armed assailant entered the apprentice training center (CFA) in Ploufragan and started shooting. A few bodies litter the floors of the corridors. There were 21 injured among the students. Room by room, a group of police officers exfiltrate the apprentices, taking care to check that they are not armed. Other agents try to negotiate with the terrorist, who is secluded in a classroom. After a certain time, the police managed to apprehend the individual, injured in the heart, whom they evacuated by dragging him to the ground.
This is the scenario of a large-scale exercise – the biggest of the year in Côtes-d'Armor – organized this Wednesday, November 27. Some 250 people are mobilized between prefecture services, police, firefighters, Samu, Civil Protection and CFA students.
“A very complex and unusual context”
“There was a bit of pressure,” says a young police officer in training in Saint-Brieuc. We were the first responders on site. I had never dealt with this type of situation, it was very instructive. »
The operation lasts a good two hours, during which the different stakeholders test their communication and cooperation. A call to 15 is the trigger for the exercise: the Samu directly alerts the police, who send civilian agents to the scene, quickly joined by “level 2” police officers, more experienced in dealing with this type of situation.
“We make progress with each training session,” says Arnaud Garnier, departmental director of the national police. It is essential to work on our intervention techniques in a very complex and unusual context. We wanted to stick as closely as possible to reality, in visual and sound terms, to be ready if necessary. »
An alert SMS
At the end of the exercise, Pauline Dubus, member of the prefectural body, tries out a fictitious press conference to practice crisis communication. In a very real speech this time, she lists the three objectives of this day: the organization of relief and the care of victims, the operational response of law enforcement and coordination and communication between services. and to the public.
At the same time, the “Fr-Alert” system is being tested. This involves sending a warning SMS to people present within the perimeter of the town of Ploufragan. “In a real alert situation, this means would allow you to receive instructions on expected behavior to ensure your protection in the event of danger,” the message said. 45,000 people potentially received this SMS. But several witnesses on site were not notified or were notified after the events.
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