First responders conduct training at Hanahan Middle School before building is demolished

HANAHAN, S.C. (WCBD) – Hanahan Middle School will soon be reconstructed, and in the process, first responders are utilizing the old building to conduct some advanced training before demolition.

Hanahan’s fire and police departments spent some time at the school on Friday conducting hands-on training and working on maneuvers like breaching classroom doors.

“The safety of our kids is always at the forefront of our minds. So anytime we can help our law enforcement partners in training, whether it’s our SRO training or our tactical teams training, anytime we can support their training in the safety of our schools or help improve the safety of our schools, we like to do that,” explained Brian Fenton, Berkeley County Schools Security Emergency Management.

The Hanahan Police Department worked on some tactical breaching training that involved using a shotgun to blow out the locks on heavy doors. The College of Charleston Department of Public safety helped provide instruction on that skill.

“To practice our response to critical incidents that might happen in a school,” said Hanahan Police Chief Rick Gebhardt of the training.

Since Hanahan Middle School is being demolished, this training can allow them to train without having to worry about damage to the classrooms. Police and fire trained on their own and together.

“And then there’s a chance where we can get together and do a rescue task force training where we can practice where we would go in and secure a building and they would go in afterward and help treat people they might need help,” said Chief Gebhardt.

Officials say doing this in a real school makes the training hit home.

“What does is it brings the necessity of this type of training to the forefront of our minds. We understand why this is so important. Kids’ lives could depend on our ability to get into a secured room to save their lives and to understand that, and to know that there were children here at one point, there were teachers here at one point, there were staff here at one point- that they could’ve had to depend upon our ability to get in there and save them. It just makes this even more urgent.”

Construction at the middle school is expected to be completed within the next few years.