MARINE CORPS BASE HAWAII, KANEOHE BAY, HI. -- "Come quick, they're gonna blow us up" was the cry for help the Military Police Department at MCB Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, heard at 8 a.m., Nov. 15.
The blue skies that seemed to bring another peaceful Hawaiian day to K-Bay were clouded when the distress call came and MP's had to react during the Anti-Terrorism Exercise 2000, an annual event that tests the base's readiness in dealing with terrorist situations.
The call came from the Boondocker Theater where 50 hostages were being held.
"We barricaded the streets to keep innocent people out of harm's way," said Cpl. Matthew Riley, one of the many MP's who responded to the call. "We had to set up a 300-foot buffer zone around the boondocker. Alternate routes have been made to keep traffic flowing smoothly and keep the people away from harm."
Riley was one of four patrol units that blocked off every access route around the Boondocker and routed traffic to safety.
A Command Post was set up at the Lemon Lot, only a few hundred meters away, and members of the Criminal Investigation Division made contact and began negotiations with "Terrorist X", played by Cpl. Steven Smith, a personnel services clerk with Headquarters Bn.
Terrorists, bombs, and hostage-takers were not the only threats the base faced during the exercise.
At 9:15 a.m., another call made from a cell phone somewhere on base with yet another bomb threat from terrorists.
This time, the calling terrorist did not give out any information and offered only a short period of time before he would blow up a building.
After tracking the phone call and discovering a suspicious vehicle, the Marines located the terrorist at 2466 Cochran St.
Once the terrorist's location was discovered, the Special Reaction Team was called into play. Marines approached the building with weapons cocked and ready.
They entered the building from an upstairs bedroom and caught "Terrorist Y", Cpl. Arthur Maddox, also a personnel services clerk from HQBn, in an adjacent bedroom.
Before he had time to fire a shot, SRT was in the room. After the terrorist was neutralized they proceeded downstairs and found a briefcase containing dynamite.
"Our mission (in a terrorist situation) is to get the bodies needed to assault the building at any time," said SRT commander, 1st Lt. David Wagner.
Because SRT is always on call, each Marine carries a pager. When the word went out that SRT would be in the reserve, Marines began arriving at the staging area.
"When it comes to terrorist situations, there are many pieces to put together," added Wagner. "I believe that SRT is the tip of the spear. When more force and training is needed, we are called in."
By 11 a.m., one of the two terrorist threats was neutralized, leaving the Boondocker and hostages still in danger.
After much negotiating, Terrorist X decided to "press the button" and blow up the building. With the help of base Explosive Ordnance Disposal, a simulated bomb exploded "notionally," killing and injuring many of the hostages.
Again, SRT was put into action. This time, all the Marines wore gas masks, not knowing if the explosion had biological or chemical warfare capabilities.
Once the theater was clear, they began removing victims from the area, while trying to locate Smith. Once all the victims were removed, and the terrorist was identified, a team of medical specialist from Tripler Army Medical Center came to help the wounded.
The Special Medical Augmentation Response Team was flown to K-Bay to set up both a decontamination site and medical site.
Victims were treated based on the extent of their injury, from extreme, close-to-death victims, to ones who had minor cuts and bruises.
By 2 p.m., all the aspects of the training and testing of K-Bay's Anti-terrorism/Force Protection was complete for another year.
"Everyone was tired, but smiling in the end," said Maj. James Parran, assistant chief of staff G-3. "I think it was a bona fide success. Joint participants really enjoyed working with MCB Hawaii Marines and Sailors."