An example of the Quick Reaction Force is the
Lodz Special Group – previously known as the Repression-Assault
Group. It is one of the departments of the Intelligence Section
of the
Municipal
Police Headquarter in Lodz.
It is composed of several officers trained in a range of
specialty areas, former soldiers of the special units and the
Military Police.
Among their number are professional
parachutists,
bomb disposal specialists, frogmen
and
lifeguards. Before they
go out on
the streets, they
are put through
an additional three-month training
period.
All the police officers, belonging to the
special group, are volunteers. They
are required
to take psychological and physical tests. The task of
the police officers is to detain hooligans, thieves,
drug dealers and, in particular, armed criminals. The
group
carries
out particularly difficult tasks
such as- gaining entry to buildings known to contain
criminals and the detention of criminals in crowded
areas,
where there are
innocent people and the use of firearms would be
dangerous.
When
they are not on any particular special duty,
they support ”normal” patrols in their interventions
around the city. Their equipment is
equivalent to that of counter-terrorist units:
automatic
Glauberyt
or H&K pistols,
Glock
pistols
and Mosberg
rifles
with they may fire rubber bullets, an incapacitating
net or a movable ram.
The officers also have bulletproof vests, special
gloves with a teflar protective coating and shields.
