Bondi Junction chosen for terrorism exercise
BY MEGAN PALIN
NSW Emergency Services took advantage of the City Rail network shutdown at Bondi Junction Railway Station on April 9 from 12 to 4 am to test their responses to potential terrorist incidents in the rail network.
The exercise – dubbed Flare II – is part of the NSW Counter Terrorism Command’s ongoing exercise programme to evaluate preparedness of emergency services to a variety of incidents.
Railcorp General Manager of Emergency Preparedness, Ron Creighton, said the exercise was conducted to help police, ambulance and fire brigades make sure their standard operating procedures interlink with each other while they are on site. ‘It is so the command control is effective across agencies so that you can get the required outcomes,’ he said.
Creighton said communication, response times and effectiveness of command and control went very well.
‘There were a couple of little things there that we need to tighten up and change a bit but that’s what the exercises are about ‘ to allow us to find if any of those areas don’t quite meet the requirements and put them in place,’ he said.
Creighton said Bondi Junction Railway Station was chosen for the exercise as a risk review indicated it could be a more attractive area for a terrorist incident, compared with other rail stations. ‘You have got your bus interchange area, you’ve got your station concourse at one level and your platforms at another level, and then above the station you have your commercial areas like buildings and shops,’ he said.
But the exercise was not conducted in response to a particular threat or incident. ‘We run a series of exercises each year and with World Youth Day coming up we want to make sure that everybody is fully prepared and the procedures that we have in place work effectively,’ Creighton said.
The exercise included personnel from the state’s Police Force, Fire Brigade, Ambulance Service, RailCorp, and relevant private sector owners/operators.
A representative for the NSW Counter Terrorism Command refused to comment on the outcomes of Flare II.
