After the shooting in Orlando, Florida I have been asked by few people many questions around the Active Shooter situation. In response to this, I have decided to write this to help people with a very traumatic and life altering situation. I want it to be made perfectly clear upfront, I offer this just as a perspective to stimulate the thought process. In no way does this substitute training, nor is it meant to be a decisive "guide", it is offered just as information and is just my humble opinion, it in no way reflects that of Federal, State or other Law Enforcement agencies. I base this on my life experience and/or education.
First, we must understand what is an Active Shooter. "An active shooter is an individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and other populated area. In most cases, active shooters use firearms and there is no pattern or method to their selection or victims. Active shooter situations are unpredictable and evolve quickly." This definition is per the department of FEMA, of the United States of America. I want you to re-read the definition slowly and let it sink in.
We need to understand a few things right up front. One, active shooter situations have been around in the United States for a long time. If you are old enough or research you may remember a rash of "shootings" in the 70's and early 80's. From them a phrase was coined, "going postal". Many of these was that of disgruntled employees, returning to "give payback", they made news, but was happening in small amounts. It is true that we have not seen the increase of these situations, until these last years (of course in my opinion Media does not help it). So we know they have been around for a while, which leads to the next one. Two,active shooter's are not criminals! Yes, there very actions are criminal, but if you think about it, they are in a different class, of which I put them in Terrorist (yes, I said it). If you look at criminal's, typically they want something, and do not want to get caught and/or be punished. Active Shooter's have all but one goal, to inflict as much death, injury and terror upon innocent people as they can. They have no other objective, and no morale compass. This in itself, is something that people who live by ethics and laws do not comprehend, nor can we unless you have been exposed to the evil that people without humanity can do. Three, active shooters always will end with one result, you can research it if like. It comes down to the active shooter, either him/her (yes women do it too), being put down my effective fire from Law Enforcement, and on rare occasion trained armed citizens.
So, let us recap so far. Active shooters can be men or women, they will strike without any warning. When they do their intention is to cause death and mass injury to innocent unarmed people. It has been around for a while, but recently become more pronounced. The situation will always end with the shooter being put down.
It can happen anywhere and at anytime, yes even here! It does not happen just in big cities, there have been these very situations happen in central Illinois from time to time, it just did not have the over all appeal for the media. The first step, in surviving an active shooter situation consist of what I call a 3 step process. The first two are easiest. First, we must recognize right down to the core of our being, that it does exist in today's world and can/will happen here. Second, we must decide right now that we (family too) will not be a casualty of an active shooter situation (or statistic as agency's call it). This is deciding right now that you will take necessary steps, education and training. If you do not get your head out of the sand, and shake it from your eyes and ears, you and/or family will be a casualty. I will not sugar coat it, our government has done that enough. Being in an active shooter situation will lead to death or lifelong injury. If you do nothing else, but the first two, then you are at about 40% chance of survival. The last 60% is the commitment of training, preparing and awareness of surviving situation.
There is a lot to be done in the 60%, more than I have time to cover here. At same time, I will not put certain things in this article to be used to cause harm to others. There are many perspectives on what to do and how in this situation. I will let you decided to find an instructor or education that fits you. No matter what though, you need to understand that awareness of your environment is crucial. It is more involved than what is covered in a basic concealed carry class. As there is more that must be thought about and planned for in short, it will include the following and more:
Awareness of: Exits, obstacles, am I alone or with family, where do I go once out, what if injured or family is/ and much more.
Here I am just skimming the surface, but know this now. Unless you been in the military or Law Enforcement and been in a situation where bullets are flying at you, you have not comprehension of the chaos and stress that will be happening. This is why training is essential, it will never mimic the real life, but will prepare you for it.
In this situation, your life is in your hands. We live in a country that is blessed with top quality law enforcement people who are willing, trained to handle this situation. However, as good as they are they can not be in every place to stop it. Remember, it happens without notice. Your call to 911 will get them on scene, but then they must gather intelligence to safely and swiftly end the situation. This takes time, sometimes it can take up 10-30 minutes. What is the shooter doing in that amount of time?
If at all possible, your number one priority is to get out of the building. Do not stay, get to and exit and leave the facility, then call 911 and get help, try to keep others from going in. Getting out is the only guaranteed action to ensure that you will not become a victim. Everything else, can lead to you being injured or dead. If you can not get out, then find a secure place to hide. Barricade yourself in the room, shut off all ringer's or any other noise device. Block the door to keep the shooter from possibly coming in. If with other's then explain that all need to be silent. I strongly recommend arming yourself, with any option at hand. We pray we don't need it, but if the shooter does intend to come in, you then fight with what you have. If you are forced to fight, then you do so with all your might. No half measure, you will not quit as long as you can. If you are forced to fight, then do so as if your life depends on it, because it does.
We need to understand something that many people do not get. When Law Enforcement enter's an active shooter situation, there job is to ensure the safety of all that is there. Their main concern at that time is the shooter. This is the biggest threat, they will go to where the shots was last heard. They are not there initially to evacuate you or render aid, they must ensure the shooter is stopped. After the shooter is stopped, they will signal for recovery and EMS units to come in and render aid. Only after the scene is secure.
Once, you are evacuated out of the building you will either be rushed to hospital or kept in a contained area. The purpose of this is to account for everyone, and to gather information of the situation. The investigation has started and they need your cooperation. Do not leave this area, give them the facts. Try not to point, yell or scream, as this may distract resources that are needed elsewhere. Once Law Enforcement has gathered information, ensured your safety, and all identified you will no longer be detained.
Aftermath, surviving a active shooter situation will be very traumatic, even if you was not injured. You will suffer from post traumatic stress disorder. It is highly recommended to seek counseling and help. Never be ashamed to get quality help, this can be done through the local Police, Religious leaders and/or Veteran organizations such as VFW or American Legion.
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