“Major” Palm Desert mass casualty, active shooter drill planned
PALM DESERT — Residents who live in the Palm Desert area are being advised to expect seeing a “major”multi-agency, mass casualty, active shooter drill this Sunday morning, Oct. 20.
The drill, which will be held at the Westfield Mall at 72840 Highway 111 in the City of Palm Desert, will include Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, along with other local and private agencies as well as persons acting as victims and witnesses.
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“The drill is a cooperative effort that will simulate a mass casualty, multi-jurisdiction and multi-agency response to an active shooter incident and will be designed to provide a realistic simulation, that will test the capabilities of law enforcement, Fire /EMS, private industry, and the healthcare system,” Riverside Sheriff’s Public Information Officer Deputy Mike Vasquez said of the upcoming training event. “The drill will also include volunteers who will simulate specific roles, including victims and other bystanders.”
“Members of the public that are traveling near the Westfield Mall on Sunday morning, please keep in mind that this is a drill that is occurring and not become alarmed if you see emergency vehicles grouped together or traveling from the Westfield Mall to area hospitals,” Vasquez explained.
Signs will be posted at and near the mall and surrounding area to warn and remind the public about Sunday morning’s drill.
Members of the media are invited to observe the drill from a pre-designated area, and all media inquiries and specific questions about the drill should be directed to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Captain and Public Information Officer Fernando Herrera at (951) 940-6985 or by email at: [email protected]
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery, 48, moved last year to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, (the now defunct) Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 29 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.