Chasing down a suspect is just one of the dangerous situations where police need to drive defensively, which is why more than 200 Horry County police officers have been taking emergency vehicle training the past few days.
Horry County police took their driving test on Thursday. The annual assessment is a recap of what officers learn at the police academy.
"You'll have to do some off road recovery, some parallel parking, evasive breaking," said Sgt. Robert Kegler with Horry County police.
The course is split into two parts that test precision and speed.
The course can last anywhere from three to five minutes and when officers are on the course, they can hit speeds anywhere from 35 to 80 miles per hour.
"We're looking for them to show us the skills they've already learned. And exhibit to us that they can use them. Shuffle steering, that they brake properly without stepping on the break petal really hard," said Sgt. Joseph Hawes.
The course is set up with cones to simulate typical Horry County scenes they might encounter on patrol.
"We're not going to hit any pedestrians because we simulate this as hey, this is the middle of bike week and we got a thousand people around our car looking to see what we are doing," Hawes added.
If a driver hits cones, he or she gets one more chance to take the test. If not, the officer has to go through a remedial course with an instructor.
Police say the course helps prepare them for everything from high speed chases to patrolling neighborhoods. There's always the unknown factor of what's going to happen.
