CAMP PENDLETON : 500-Pound Bombs Get Their Attention

An earth-shaking Camp Pendleton training exercise had more than 400 people calling Escondido police Wednesday evening, wondering what was rattling their windows and shaking their homes, a police spokeswoman said.

The exercise included bomb drops over central Pendleton grounds, Lt. Kevin Bentley said.

“You can’t hear the guys sneaking through the woods, but you sure can hear the 500-pound bombs dropping,” Bentley said.

The training goes on year-round, and in this instance was simulating a war situation in which air forces advance and hit targets to clear the way for ground forces to move forward, Bentley said.