| Critical incident response team | |
|---|---|
| Active | 2005 - Present |
| Country | Australia |
| Branch | Victoria Police |
| Role | Law Enforcement, Domestic Counter-Terrorism and Tactical Law Enforcement |
| Size | Undiclosed number of full-time officers |
| Part of | Specialist Support Department |
| Garrison/HQ | Melbourne, Victoria |
| Nickname | CIRT |
Critical incident response teams (CIRT) are part of the Victorian Police Force Response Unit Command.
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The critical incident response teams respond to incidents that wouldn’t warrant the attendance of the Special Operations Group but for which the general duties police are not trained or equipped to deal with, such as offenders armed with knives or potential suicides and 'suspect parcels' [1] [2]
CIRTs also maintain a 24 hour, seven day per week, first response to incidents including armed offender, hostage situations, violent prisoner control or transfer, suspicious substance attacks and terrorist actions [2] in support of the Special Operations Group. CIRT officers currently respond to over 20 incidents a month.[3][4]
In high risk situations CIRT response is to cordon and contain an area until the arrival of the Special Operations Group. CIRT officers have a range of specialised equipment and weapons in their inventory ranging from ballistic and tactical vests, shotguns, tasers, bean bag rounds and various OC (pepper spray) delivery systems [1] [3]
Network Ten's police drama Rush (2008 TV series) is based upon the critical incident response team[5].
The primary functions of the Force Response Unit are to provide support to police operations and protection to witnesses at risk. The FRU provides support to regions in their response to emergency, public disorder and general operational situations that have proved, or are anticipated to be beyond the resources of the region concerned. FRU personnel are deployed mainly in circumstances where for one reason or another, local police are unable to adequately respond to the situation [4].
In March 2004, the FRU launched the CIRT concept after a gap in the resources available to regional police members was identified [5].
In situations where incidents pose a threat to members or are difficult to resolve due to violence or other dangers and do not fall into the call out criteria of the Special Operations Group (SOG) there is another option, CIRT deployment. The provision of the CIRT has since become the main function of the FRU and an invaluable resource to Victoria Police [6].
The Force Response Unit continues to offer a variety of other support and specialist services such as: