Times Staff Report
SCHERERVILLE | Local police agencies turned in their firearms for paintball guns Tuesday during emergency response training at an abandoned home near the Schererville police station.
The team composed of Merrillville, Schererville and Crown Point police officers practiced several scenarios, including hostage situations, Merrillville police Detective Jeff Snemis said.
The group also recruited the help of four Merrillville volunteer firefighters who acted as "bad guys" in the scenarios, Snemis said.
"You can't plan for everything," Snemis said. "The more you train -- the more you go over -- the better prepared you'll be."
The home police used during the exercises Tuesday was purchased last year by Schererville as a training ground for police. The house will be torn down in the future to make way for a building expansion.
