A major anti-terror training exercise took place at Trafford Center in Manchester. As many as 800 volunteers played shoppers at the mall during the mock strike, which began Monday at midnight and lasted until 6 am on Tuesday. Dozens of officers from Greater Manchester Police, Merseyside Police, and the North West Counter Terrorism Unit were involved in the mock attack, according to Manchester Evening News. Police were assisted by fire and emergency crews as well as mall staff during the event. The Mirror said that police swept on the mall to test the response of shoppers to a Paris or Brussels-type attack on civilians. The simulation, codenamed Exercise Winchester Accord, included different scenarios such as mass casualties, suicide bombers and hostage taking.
