An Inside Look at SWAT Training

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) — Wednesday deputies with the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department’s SWAT team took part in a waterborne training exercise with agencies from across the state. “We could have a hostage situation on an island out here, a suicidal individual on a boat,” says Jesse Laintz, SWAT member. Scenarios that SWAT members suited up and took flight for in a helicopter above Lake Murray, Wednesday. SLED along with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office also took part in Wednesday’s training. Exercises included SWAT deputies jumping from the helicopter into Lake Murray in order to enhance their readiness of waterborne tactical operations. “It’s a little un-nerving at first,” says Scott Ellis, SWAT member. Ellis and Laintz were among those training Wednesday. “Specialized traning and tactics that not everybody has so I wanted to challenge myslef and see where I could go,” says Ellis. The SWAT members have only hand signals from the team leader to go by while aboard the helicopter as radios were not used Wednesday. “Everybody has to be focused, know their role and who the team leader is because that’s the one that’s going to give the hand signal,” says Ellis. “It gives us another tool in our toolbox, it givees us a way to make landfall in a different place, such as an island, a boat, a dock,” says Laintz.