The team counts

One insight in particular has stuck with Greta Sonderfeld: "Taking part has shown me that working in the police is 100% teamwork and that it works well even under time pressure." The police inspector from Oberhausen was part of the winning team of the "Comparative Exercise Guard Duty 2022". Although it was a few months ago, Sonderfeld still remembers the exercise sequences well: "We surpassed ourselves, not only as a team, but also individually."

The North Rhine-Westphalia police went to great lengths for the "comparative guard duty exercise". 54 police officers took part. The teams each consisted of representatives from different authorities. Police Inspector Michael Schemke praised the event: "This event impressively underlines the importance of guard duty. Physical fitness, the ability to work in a team, flexibility and safe control of the equipment are our life insurance."

The fact that she was part of the winning team was almost secondary for Greta Sonderfeld: "The opportunity to get to know other colleagues, exchange ideas and work together in this setting was unique. It would make sense for me to carry out another comparative guard duty exercise, although the organizational effort involved should not be underestimated."

And here is a selection of the exercise sequences that had to be completed:

• In a rotating rotation, the participants had to search a vacant school building on Duisburg's Hitzestraße together with a service dog handler for possible perpetrators.
• At the Rhine Tower in Düsseldorf, the motto was: be quick. In full gear to the viewing platform and memorize various pieces of information on the way, which were later retrieved. The clock only stopped after the last task at lofty heights. "Despite the cold weather, the 168 meters of altitude and almost 1,000 steps really made us sweat. Once we reached the top, we finished the exercise sequence by building a house of cards," says Birthe Bußmann from Hamm. "Fortunately, we then took the elevator down."
• At the “Auf dem Draap” indoor shooting range in Düsseldorf, the police officers were challenged with both the P99 and the MP5. The special feature for the teams: it is a 180° shooting range. The aim was not only to deliver a good frontal shot, but also to the left and right.
• In Duisburg at the Sechs-Seen-Platte, patrol cars drove through a course virtually blindfolded. The drivers' eyes were covered and they had to maneuver the car around pylons according to the commands of their team partners.

“I am absolutely thrilled, impressed and also proud of what the security service achieves on a daily basis,” said Interior Minister Herbert Reul during his visit to the comparison exercise. "You master these challenges on a permanent basis! Not only during such exercises, but above all in your daily service on the street under real conditions."