LEWISTON – They’re not exploring strange new worlds. Their protective gear might resemble space suits, but they’re actually police officers training for an elite emergency response team.

Their mission is to investigate incidents that could be criminal acts involving hazardous materials or weapons of mass destruction.

Seventeen law enforcement officers from Auburn, Lewiston, Lisbon and the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Department, all members of the multi-agency Hazmat-Weapons of Mass Destruction Emergency Response Team, went through one phase of their training this week at Lewiston’s Central Fire Station.

The 200 hours of training includes evidence collection and chain of custody, which could include transfers of persons in police custody to federal authorities. Part of the training will be conducted at the federal Department of Homeland Security Center for Domestic Preparedness in Anniston, Ala., in late January or early February. The exact dates have not been set.

“That will be close to the final training. They will still have some odds and ends to pick up here,” said Androscoggin Unified Emergency Management Agency Director Joanne Potvin.

The Hazmat-WMD Emergency Response Team should be operational by mid- to late-April, she said.

Lewiston police officer Michael Whalen said that the likelihood of dealing with weapons of mass destruction is a remote possibility. “We’d probably see a hazmat emergency before we’d see a weapons of mass destruction emergency.”

The team is funded through fiscal year 2004 federal allocations to the Androscoggin County Emergency Management Agency. The federal Department of Homeland Security grant is administered for Maine counties by the Maine Emergency Management Agency.

Once completely trained early next year, the officers will be prepared and equipped with protective clothing and gear to enter an area or structure contaminated by a hazardous substance that could include nuclear or chemical.