Camp Pendleton Marines To Conduct Training In Downtown LA
CBSLocal.com
December 5, 2014
Residents in and around downtown Los Angeles could hear helicopters or other military aircraft over the coming days as Marines and sailors from Camp Pendleton train in preparation for a deployment.
The training is part of a two-week military exercise that starts Friday and extends through Dec. 16 and involves about 2,400 members of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, according to the Associated Press.
While residents could see as many as six military helicopters buzzing over the downtown area over the next week, raids being held at several undisclosed locations in the city will be off limits to the public for safety reasons, Capt. Brian Block told the Associated Press.
“It’s not going to look like ‘Apocalypse Now’ by any stretch of the imagination,” Block said.
Dozens of Marines will raid buildings and shoot paintballs from modified M-15s as part of the exercise, but no residents live in the spots where the pseudo-combat will take place, according to Block.
Similar exercises will also take place at various California military bases, at a site near Las Vegas, and another site outside Flagstaff, Ariz., according to officials. Block said the Los Angeles portion will take place over a couple of days next week.
The military worked closely with the Los Angeles Police Department and notified property owners so no one will be caught off guard, Block said.
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