Those of us in the commercial maritime industry know that drills are an essential part of our professional lives. We conduct drills regularly so that in the unlikely event of an accident we can take decisive action.
Our first responsibility is safety and in order to achieve this we must plan and practice our responses to potential threats and accidents. We have learned that repetition eliminates guesswork and memorializes best practices. Conducting regular drills also allows mistakes to be reviewed and future actions to be fine-tuned.
Recently, BB Riverboats participated in a maritime-related drill on the Ohio River in Cincinnati. The drill involved a hypothetical active shooter incident aboard the company’s riverboat Belle of Cincinnati while the vessel was underway.
While such an incident has never happened aboard one of my vessels in my 40-plus years of operating on our nation’s waterways, I believe it was necessary to take part to be prepared, nonetheless. Being prepared meant coordinating with all the government and law enforcement entities who should react to such an incident. In this drill, the local Area Maritime Security Committee scheduled the drill and the Coast Guard, state and local police, fire departments, and rescue assets participated.
In our hypothetical scenario, two armed individuals boarded the Belle of Cincinnati for its midday lunch cruise. As the vessel departed the dock and proceeded upriver, a crewmember noticed that these two individuals were carrying weapons and immediately notified the captain. The captain then contacted the Coast Guard. A SWAT team then approached the Belle of Cincinnati from the stern in a high-speed rigid inflatable. The riverboat slowed down but did not come to a full stop so the SWAT team could board while the vessel was still moving. The SWAT team, which was fully turned out in battle dress uniforms, personal protective armor, and assault-like weapons, searched the vessel with precision looking for the shooters.
Ultimately, the shooter threat was eliminated, and the drill was successfully concluded. There were valuable lessons learned and BB Riverboats, the Coast Guard, our local government, and law enforcement resources are now much better informed about what to do in the event of an active shooter scenario should such a terrible situation occur.
Conducting drills, even if they are tabletop exercises, are excellent ways to plan, practice, and review ways to manage worst case scenarios. In doing so, you will ultimately improve safety and eliminate the need for a little luck.
