Tampa police bomb squad must do hundreds of hours of training — per year

TAMPA, Fla. - The Tampa Police Department bomb squad has 14 bomb technicians and covers an area including six different counties. 

On average, the department responds to about 70 calls a year. Calls can vary from SWAT situations to concerned people who find old military devices left behind after a veteran family member dies.

They also check out a lot of suspicious packages at Tampa's larger events, like Gasparilla and Bucs games.

Most of the officers on the Tampa police bomb squad have regular patrols they cover around the city.  

"When you get a call for the bomb squad, you kind of have to change hats. You have to immediately be able to adapt," says TPD bomb technician, Cpl. Adam Carroll.

To make the squad and stay on the squad requires hundreds of hours of training a year. 

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"It's a career-long goal, to be honest with you," says Cpl. Carroll. "Everybody that's on our squad has been on [for] years." 

Every bomb technician in the country, whether they are local, state, or federal level, get certified at the same hazardous devices school in Huntsville, Alabama.