Active Shooter in a Church

[alfsauve]

Back to the actual event:

Rumor has it our COO has a 5 minute video on how to respond to an active shooter and we will all be watching it next week.   I imagine it's a sheeple thing.   Run, leave, hide, throw cans of food. 

I'm all for avoiding incoming fire, but sometimes that may not be an option.

Will report when I see it.  Maybe even post it for you.   I must watch the Best Defense before next week now.

[MikeBjerum]

Alf,

Thanks for the update, and I look forward to a report.  However, I think I have learned enough about you to trust you but I will say it anyway, don't dismiss everything non-firearm as sheeple.  I get very tired and frustrated with the Rambos of the online world.  I was taught, and I base my training  on three phases:  Avoid! Deescalate! React!; And react is not always a firearm solution.  Just because we have a gun on us, or wish we did, doesn't make everything a gun option.  We also need to remember that not everybody WANTS to rely on a gun.  And in many situations the gun option is ruled out due to surroundings where gunfire will cause more damage.

[tombogan03884]

I am a member of a volunteer church security team and have recently been asked to lead the team. I have been looking for information on training and proper response to an active shooter in a church. Now, low and behold, an episode of Best Defense will address that very issue. I know that this episode will impart some important points, but as with most things, this is just a start. Does anyone have information on training addressing active shooters? While there is starting to be training out there related to church security, the active shooter portion is less specific, more academic, and not geared to hands on training.

I appreciate any information this group may offer.

PEOM



That's all well and good, but this is not the appropriate place for thread drift.
Does any one have any thing more useful to contribute than "let them all die or the insurance will ruin you" ?
Let's stick to PEOM's question here.

[MikeBjerum]

Churches are not that much different than schools when it comes to this issue.  The big name course in our area, and gaining traction nation wide, is ALICE.  I am not an overall fan of it, but that may be because of the gestopo like officers we have teaching it down here.  Another course to look into, but he hasn't offered much over the last year, is Rob Pincus' SARC  (School Attacker Response Course.  Even though Rob doesn't have any scheduled, he has trained several instructors in this.

[TAB]

I would say the major issue in that environment is actually going to be crowd control.  as with any emergency in a heavily populated building.  I will review your fire escape procedures.  they might not be up to par,  it will also give you a good basis on how to evacuate people.  which as I see it is the real major issue.

plus you can also train people on fire escape at the same time.


as M 58 said, avoid, defuse, react.    the avoid parts pretty simple actually live a Christian lifestyle, that will stop most shooting in churches.  there was a recent story of where a reverend was shot by  a practitioner.  it turns out the good Reverend was banging his wife and knocked up his daughter.  granted it wasn't a mass shooting, but having an incident like that is more likely then having a mass shooting.

[Sponsor]

[alfsauve]

....And react is not always a firearm solution.  Just because we have a gun on us, or wish we did, doesn't make everything a gun option.

That's called, "Just because you have a hammer doesn't make every problem a nail."  (or something like that.)

....don't dismiss everything non-firearm as sheeple.  I get very tired and frustrated with the Rambos of the online world.  I was taught, and I base my training  on three phases:  Avoid! Deescalate! React!;

What I've seen in other material is all based on Avoid. With zero information on Deescalate or React.   I read one article that even discouraged any reaction at all.   So that was the basis for my negative expectation, not a desire to be a Rambo either on-line or in-person.

I think Tab has a good point, this is an excellent time to go over emergency evacuation and usher training. 

[TAB]

just the procedures themselves.  the grounds would also be helpful to be fully evaluated.  look for hiding spots, obstructions evacuations,  locks,  and then do a sweep of the neighborhood to figure out what is exactly a safe direction.  the very last thing you want to be doing a shooting someone where the nursery is right behind the wall.    there is a lot of ground to cover here and it will take several hours, maybe even days.

[Ping]

Hello to POEM. I also participate on our church security team. I have been on the team for over a year now.  Ours consist of local, county and state police and firemen (Some retired). I am one of a few who is on the team and not a sworn officer. We do carry firearms and are discreet. We are also trained in first aid and CPR. The church I belong to has four services and we try to have five covering security for each service. We work scheduled weekends.

I was pretty excited to see that The Best Defense put it into an episode. I hope this situation never happens, but being a soft target, better be prepared for the worst.

Must say that in my first year, we had one individual that was pretty crazy. We kept a close eye on him. He had a back pack with a steak knife in it. He was rather odd and mentioned seeing demons. This guy was in and out of jail. He came for a couple of Sundays and disappeared. They found him in a barn out in the county. He had hung himself. Pretty sad.

One of the areas I pay attention to are the Sunday School classes. We have a good program signing the kids in and out. Today you have to worry about abductions and the system works well. The parents and kids are given stickers with their numbers. They sign in and out.

We do tour around the church and wear radios and ear pieces. We escort the offering out and to a secure office. Observe the parking lot for people stealing out of vehicles. We normally have two or three in during the service and two out.

We all really enjoy our service to the church and keeping the parishioners safe and sound.  If you have any questions, feel free to message me.