Officers from London Fire Brigade’s National Interagency Liaison Officer (NILO) Network have conducted training on behalf of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and The US State Department.
The course, which focused on how global emergency services respond to terrorist incidents, was attended by five NATO partner nations, with officers from Morocco, Tunisia, Burkina Faso, Jordan and Egypt taking part. This was the second iteration of this training, following on from the successful sessions held in 2024.
The training is designed to give officers the skills to improve inter-agency planning, operational preparedness, and response to a range of incidents including; major incidents, acts of terror, Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive (CBRN(e)) incidents, and serious public disorders.
The skills and knowledge obtained by the officers that attended can also be used when responding in a variety of standard emergencies in a multi-agency environment. The training provides valuable insights to strengthen and improve civil emergency plans, complementing national training systems and in developing enhanced cooperation between first responders.
Officers from law enforcement, emergency services and military backgrounds attended the course. Attendees heard from the Brigade’s officers, as well as national subject matter experts, about how emergency services and public bodies in the UK coordinate their response to emergency situations. This included sharing the UK’s Joint Emergency Service Interoperability Principles (JESIP) and Ten Second Triage.
There was also an opportunity for the participating officers to learn specifically about the response capabilities employed by the emergency services in London. This included a tour of the Metropolitan Police Service Special Operations Room and a demonstration of the specialist assets available to London Fire Brigade when responding to high threat and marauding terrorist incidents as well as viewing specialist equipment such as the Brigade’s 32-meter ladders, Drones, Fire Rescue Units and fire boats.
Assistant Commissioner Patrick Goulbourne, NILO National Co-ordinator, said: “It’s been an honour for the Brigade to again host our global partners, working in partnership with our colleagues from NATO and the US State Department.
“In an uncertain world, preparedness is key. By giving first responders the ability to coordinate an effective response to complex and challenging situations, it improves the chances of a successful response aimed at maximising safety for the public.
“This training allows us to share the lessons we have learnt over the last two decades with partners, helping to develop how their emergency services and civil protection work together. It also offers us the opportunity to understand the environments they work in and learn from the challenges they may face.”
The programme is a part of NATO’s wider work in the region. NATO’s Counter-Terrorism Section is also developing and conducting counter terrorism courses for assistance-eligible NATO partner countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Gulf, and Sahel regions thanks to the financial support provided by the United States to the NATO National Contributory Fund.
This programme encompasses both civilian law enforcement and criminal justice agencies as well as armed forces, defence, and security officials with a view toward strengthening overall civil-military cooperation and information sharing on counterterrorism efforts through a holistic, whole-of-government approach, in counter-terrorism areas of work such as: Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear defence, battlefield evidence, countering terrorism financing, border security and response to terrorist incidents.
The NILO Network can trace its origins back to 2001, when officers from London Fire Brigade began to look at how the UK would coordinate an emergency response to an act of terror. For over 20 years NILO has continued to develop its expertise in this area, initially working to improve capabilities across the UK. Now, in partnership with NATO and the US State Department, NILO is looking at how this can be shared with partners across the world.
The partnership with NATO grew out of the Brigade’s involvement in the Counter Terrorism Preparedness Network (CTPN), which brings together the mayors and counter terrorism leads of major European cities. Through these meetings, it became clear that its NILO expertise could be used to train NATO partners. As a result, the programme has been created, with additional support from the US State Department, with the aim of helping first responders increase public safety globally.