

Today was by far the most cool day I have spent with the Abbotsford Police. Though it was an early 6:30am start, I got to take a ride in the armed vehicle which is like a tank/hummer to New Westminster to tag along with the MIERT (Municipal Integrated Emergency Response Team) while they did their marine training.
The day started off with PT for them, which was a swim test in their uniforms with a series of tests they had to accomplish like jumping off the 10 foot diving board. After that, we drove to the police detachment in New Westminster for the team to suit up and to go over a safety power-point. From there, the team went on a zodiac boat and I went on a bigger boat that was also being used for their training.
The MIERT team learned how to come aboard another boat from the zodiac at high speeds. So what they do is stick their boat to the boat they want to board and they drive long side of it at fast speeds and they basically jump between boats, and then they do a search of the boat's cabin. It was really cool to watch them run and participate in their scenarios.
After that, some members from the New Westminster detachment and I took the zodiac to an island under the Port Mann bridge in the river where we were doing the training and built a shelter out of a tarp. The point of this scenario was to come on the island and find the tarp and take into custody the people on the island and question us. The two officers and I that where on the island shot rounds into the sky and when we were caught we where supposed to lie about everything they asked us. They where so quiet we didn’t even hear them surround us. We wore masks and had training guns and hid in the bushes; waiting for them to come in and arrest us.
The MIERT team trained like it was real, it was super cool to see and observe how they work. By far this was the best day of my practicum.
Kristi Genzale is a 19-year-old born and raised in Chilliwack, BC, who has always wanted to be a police officer. Kristi, who is returning in the fall to NWCC to work towards an Associate Degree in Criminology, is doing her CCSJ work practicum with the Abbotsford Municipal Police.