The Broward Sheriff's Office is changing the way they respond emergency situations.
NBC 6 got an exclusive look Wednesday as deputies trained for new incident command protocols -- the new policy means one deputy is in charge of the entire response in the air and on the ground.
"All these dynamics are occurring much faster because we're empowering our deputies to institute these things as well as our dispatchers," Sheriff Gregory Tony said. "It's not wasting time, there's no confusion as to who is in charge, it just starts the whole process of making sure everyone is responsible and where they need to be."
The changes were prompted by frustration over communication breakdowns and command issues during the shootings at Fort Lauderdale Airport and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
"That was one of the big shortfalls that we found at the airport and MSD was the ability to immediately establish a command post and put those command and control aspects into motion, so that's what we're focusing on here with this training," Major Steve Robson said.
The policy changes are already in effect -- when four or more deputies respond to a scene, someone is put in charge.
"By putting into policy that the supervisor is constantly implementing the incident management system, and that style, when it is a major incident, it's going to come second nature for them to implement the system and manage it more efficiently," Robson said.
