03/28/2024
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 By Sergeant Gary Turlington, Bladen County Specialized Training Unit

The Bladen County First Responder Training Center has been a very busy place for several years. The last two weeks have seen new events take place unlike no other in the country. The Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Specialized Training Unit has hosted an international group of highly trained and qualified individuals from both Spain and Brazil to attend courses offered here and to exchange ideas, techniques, and tactics that may be imparted in our training to our regional officers. 

Our forests have seen much activity in the Jones Lake State Park and Turnbull Creek State Forest area for the delivery and presentation of a six-day man tracking class for our first responders. This class teaches the participants to track lost children or mentally challenged persons that may have wandered away, or to locate dangerous fugitives. The Primary Instructor is a US Army Green Beret and his Cadre of Instructors teaches tactical movements and principles to enhance the safety of the responding officers.

The Chief of the Torres Security Group arranged for the transportation of the special guests to our facility. The guests are two members of Spain’s Royal Guard, which are the personal protectors of the King and Queen of Spain and four members of the Brazilian Elite Civilian Law Enforcement and Elite Military Law Enforcement Forces. A part of our training with these highly specialized Special Operations Groups has been focused on the exponentially increasing threat of attacks and ambushes against our First Responders. The points of interest have been the recognition, identification, and mitigation of these threats among our groups.

I will close as our friends from Brazil from the Mort Global Operations Group have said, and quote, “The training event with which your department honors us contributes both to the improvement of our team’s knowledge and to the renown, ours and your department, and not only nationally, but also internationally. We welcome it with joy, but also with humility, as part of our group of operators that work for the constant benefit and improvement of Society.” 

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