08/30/2026
The Union County Sheriff's Office coordinated an Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response (ALERRT) training event this weekend at Southwestern Community College. The Active Attack Integrated Response (AAIR) component is a 16-hour, 2-day multi-agency training program designed to improve coordination between law enforcement, fire, telecommunicators, and EMS during active threat events. The training starts in the classroom and then moves to live simulations with actors and responders. Jim Stover from the Iowa Department of Public Safety's Governor's School Safety Bureau led the training, along with three other certified instructors.
Agencies participating in the training included the Union County Sheriff's Office, Creston Police Department, Union County Iowa Emergency Management , Afton Police Department, Afton Volunteer Fire Department, Clarke County Sheriff's Office, Osceola, Iowa Police Department, Harrison County Conservation Board, Iowa, Greater Regional Health, and Creston Fire Department. Dispatchers from the Union County and Adair County Sheriff's Offices also took part, sharing scenario details with first responders over the radio. We hope this training is never needed, but we always want to be ready.