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4- The Oakville Beaver, Friday June 6, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com All's well that ends well, even on training exercise Continued from page 1 marked with blue tape to avoid any mistakes. L'Ortye said Halton police run scenarios of this sort between two and four times a year depending on the ability of police to find a suitable building in which to hold the exercise. On this particular occasion Creekbank Properties allowed police to use the abandoned Park Plaza Hotel, located on Oakville Place Drive. "Buildings like this are ideal because we might have to do some damage to a door getting through it," said L'Ortye. The abandoned hotel also offered officers a variety of challenges including dark corridors with the only light coming from win- dows in the suites. According to the scenario, the two criminals had barricaded themselves in one of the second-storey rooms along with two hostages. Since one criminal claimed to be armed with a semi-automatic handgun, and with no phone hook up, communications between the police and the criminals was challenging. This was overcome with a little help from the bomb disposal unit. "We've got a robot that brought the phone to the room," said L'Ortye. "This is a good opportunity for us to work with our partners and it's a good opportunity to test our equipment and our training methods." With communications established, Halton police negotiators established a dia- logue with the criminals in an effort to end the situation peacefully. Meanwhile, members of the tactical response unit, clad in full body armour and armed with automatic weapons, moved into position in case the room needed to be taken by force. At one point, an officer could be seen rushing into the hotel with a pair of bolt cutters and a battering ram. Although the situation is make believe, L'Ortye said the ending is far from certain with the hostages possibly being killed if the officers make the wrong decisions. "The ending is never guaranteed, just like in real life," he said. As the standoff continued one of the suspects attempted to flee the area, but was chased down by a police dog. Fortunately, the officer playing the role of the suspect had padding on and was not injured by the dog's teeth. With the scenario approaching its eighth hour, police officers made their move to end the situation and apprehend the last suspect. At around 2 p.m. a loud boom rocked the hotel as police employed what they referred to as a distraction device, to divert the suspect's attention while police stormed the room. "Everything worked out very well," said L'Ortye. "The tactical team made a dynamic entry into the hotel room, no shots were fired and they were able to rescue the hostages. No one was injured in either the scenario or real life." 15 H UR MATTRESS SALE! 6 ER O T HD E L S MO Let us put a fire in your Hearth day bed Black available $ 119 9 ER O T HD E L S MO iron futon Black Frame only $ 89 289 349 399 569 399 449 499 799 20 E R O T HD E L S MO CHATEAU Black Iron 119 309 369 429 599 519 599 699 969 CUSHION TOP COMFORT SLEEP Twin Double Queen King Twin Double Queen King 179 Set 219 Set 239 Set 339 Set 239 Set 269 Set 309 Set 459 Set CHOICES Twin Double Queen King Twin Double Queen King 189 Set 229 Set 259 Set 359 Set 329 Set 379 Set 459 Set 599 Set 15 YR. WTY 20 YR. WTY "MASONRY & FIREPLACE DESIGN SPECIALISTS" w w w. c o b b l e s t o n e m b e r s . c a PEDIC EUROTOP PRACTIC POCKET COIL 406 SPEERS RD., OAKVILLE ACROSS FROM RONA LANSING 905-337-2066 20 YR. WTY 25 YR. WTY Carpet Cleaning Specialists Since 1952 Spot! RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL WALL TO WALL FURNITURE & UPHOLSTERY AREA RUGS PERSIAN & ORIENTAL Truck Mount In-Plant Service Water Damage Restoration Any Sat. 9-6 Sun. 11-5 3 FREE With Any Mattress Set Purchased COUPON COUPON OR Bed Frame Mattress Pad Bed Rails Comforter Layaway Set Up Disposal of Old Set Percale Set of Sheets Slip Sticks Pillow Local Delivery NO GST NO PST With Any Mattress Set Purchased 25% Drop-off Discount! sofa sleeper Pillowtop $ Burlington Woodbridge 10 ER O T HD E L S MO 259 5 ER O T HD E L S MO mates bed Deep Drawers $ 249 6 ER O T HD E L S MO electric bed Twin XL $ 949 FREE 250 ml SPOTTING BOTTLE Mississauga Brampton 666 Appleby Line (Fairview/Appleby) Behind McDonald's 6435 Erin Mills Pkwy. (at Battleford Centre in the Tim Horton's Plaza) www.onthespotcleaning.ca 1446 WALLACE RD., OAKVILLE, ON Bronte t 905-681-9020 905-542-0481 905-825-4256 QEW W Speers Wallace Hours: Mon. - Thurs. 10am -6pm, Friday 10am - 8pm, Saturday 9am - 6pm, Sunday. 11am - 5pm