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By Linda Herridge

NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center

Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana is committed to and makes safety at the center a top priority. As part of that commitment, a well-trained Emergency Response Team (ERT) protects the center’s workforce and assets 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Recently, the ERT placed in the top five overall at the 2013 International SWAT Roundup in Orlando, Fla. The competition featured more than 50 teams from Florida, the U.S. and other countries around the world.

During the competition, Kennedy’s eight-member team of security officers employed by Chenega Security Support and Solutions, had the opportunity to train with other teams, shared information about past events and discussed best practices that could help other ERTs cope with emergencies and provide more effective training environments.

“This is the third year in a row that the ERT Team has finished in the top five at the Swat Roundup,” said Mark Borsi, the chief of security. “Their unprecedented success in this tough and prestigious competition demonstrates the teams’ consistent dedication to duty and the rigors of staying prepared to resolve security emergencies safely and quickly. Tragedies at Fort Hood, the Washington Navy Yard, and even Johnson Space Center, remind us of the error in believing, ’it can never happen here.’”

ERT members play a vital role in all of the day-to-day security operations at Kennedy. They can handle anything from a traffic stop, to an active shooter, to a terrorist threat, and also are used whenever the center hosts a VIP.

“We have an extensive training regimen,” said an ERT member. “We train daily between operations. We train weekly at the end of our shifts. And we also cap it off with a yearly training exercise that lasts two weeks.”

The ERT members recently completed intensive annual training at the NASA Protective Services Training Academy and other facilities around the center to keep their competencies and skills current. A wide variety of assets were used during the training, including land vehicles, helicopters, abandoned facilities, special equipment and other resources.

“ERT team members are chosen based on their leadership abilities, their ability to deal with stress, and their ability to overcome physical obstacles they may see day to day,” said an ERT training supervisor.

Another ERT team member said: “The professionalism of the ERT Team is paramount. We have people from various backgrounds ranging from law enforcement to military. They’re all born leaders and they’re ready to put it on the line for Kennedy’s employees.”