The Columbine School tragedy in April 1999, changed the way law enforcement trained and prepared to respond to mass casualty and active shooter incidents. Those changes have continued to evolve over the years following other incidents that have occurred both locally and internationally.

These tragedies remind us that we must always be prepared to respond to or react to a mass casualty incident in a moment’s notice. At MPD we practice this on a regular basis and we have hundreds of officers with specialized training in this regard.

However, the reality is that these types of tragedies can occur anywhere and at any time. The Department of Homeland Security has prepared a series of useful documents that provide advice on how to respond to an active shooter incident. While these documents cannot be all inclusive, as every situation is different and dynamic, they do provide good guidance that could potentially save your life.

• Active Shooter Preparedness Workshop
  (Created by the US Departemnt of Homeland Security, Cybersecurity & Infastructure Security Agency)