DOWS,IA-Law enforcement officials are faced with difficult situations everyday.
Some that can mean life and death.
Iowa State Patrol’s crisis negotiation team and the north Iowa special operations group held their annual joint training for hostage or barricade situations.
They simulated situations they may come in contact with, so they know just what to do when it really happens.
Program coordinator for Iowa State Patrol’s crisis negotiation program Richard Pierce says, "What we are doing today is a joint training with the SOG, special operations group."
SOG tactical commander Linn Larson says, "It’s a simulated multiple simulations of drills that we would run into as far as real life calls."
Real life calls happen a lot more often then you might think.
The negotiation team has responded to about 40 calls across the state this year alone.
SOG covers nine counties in north Iowa and has had about 20.
These two groups respond to high stress problems like hostage and suicide situations and meth labs.
Larson says, "The tactical operations that you see here today their trained to go into those environments safely, remove people from those environments, render the medically if needed."
The negotiators handle communication with the person law enforcement is trying to access.
Training leaders say this practice makes a difference when they get to the real deal.
It gives the teams a chance to work together and learn how to communicate with each other.
Pierce says, "If you don't train using real world situations, real world events. Then when you're needed, communication can break down and that can actually cost lives."
Larson says, "This stress type of training allows you to understand how you will react when it's a real life scenario."
All this training may be one reason why the team boasts a good track record.
Pierce says, "Every incident that we've been involved in we have yet to lose anybody we've made successful contact with and we have not lost any hostages."
It takes a lot to be a part of these forces.
The teams are made of highly trained men and women.
Those on the negotiation team are troopers from all over the state.
Members of SOG are law enforcement from north Iowa.
