Police, SAF and SCDF hold terror attack drill at One Punggol

Exercise is first one held in an integrated hub and witnessed by foreign police officers

- Zaihan Mohamed

Shoppers at One Punggol Celebration Square were stunned when four armed "terrorists" stormed the integrated hub after crashing their car into a barrier.

Two of the men then fired shots from a pistol and a submachine gun, sending "members of the public" scrambling for cover.

Those who could not escape the mayhem were hacked by the other two attackers, who were armed with samurai swords.

It got even louder when the Singapore Police Force's Ground Response Force (GRF) and the Emergency Response Team, decked out in their tactical gear, arrived at the scene and fired volleys at the "terrorists".

GRF officers neutralised one of the armed men.

Two other sword-wielding attackers were also killed, while the last "terrorist", hiding inside an audio room, was captured.

The police teams were accompanied by Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officers, who donned Kevlar helmets and ballistic-resistant vests.

The drama on Aug 23 was part of the counter-terrorism and emergency preparedness exercise codenamed Exercise Heartbeat.