Responding to active shooters before the police arrive

If an active shooter nightmare began unfolding here in Southeast Missouri, police would spring into action.

That is what we would expect.

But it might not be our highly trained special-response officers who arrive on the scene. Several law-enforcement agencies have specific officers trained with military-style weapons, tactics and defenses, but if an active shooter would begin a shooting spree, it would be patrol officers first on the scene. The SWAT officers would assemble and arrive later.

Once again, this reminds us of the sacrifices and bravery it takes to be a police officer. While we know there are bad cops out there who grab headlines for all the wrong reasons, the overwhelming majority of officers sign up to help the public and are willing to put themselves in harm's way to protect others. It is the very nature of the occupation.

But officers, particularly in rural areas, can do only so much, because there are only a certain number of them. In rural counties such as Bollinger, it might take 30 minutes or more for an officer to arrive at a school.

That's why ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) training is so important, along with other security measures at schools and other public places.

Some of our employees at the Southeast Missourian have gone through ALICE training. If you ever find yourself in an active shooter situation, the best thing you can do is to get out of the building as quickly as possible. If it's not safe to get to an exit, and you can barricade yourself safely behind a locked door, do so. If you cannot do either of those things, be prepared to fight. Throw things at the attacker, like staplers or books, whatever you can get your hands on. Do not crouch into a fetal position on the floor. That makes you an easy target for someone whose aim is to simply kill as many people as possible.

Once again the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, and the earlier killings at an abortion clinic in Colorado, are reminders there are unstable and violent people in the world.

Training for those situations, even though it is highly unlikely you'll ever experience one, is important, not just for law enforcement, but for all of us who work in public places.

On occasion, it's prudent to think what you would do if you found yourself in the presence of a mass killer. Knowing what you would do ahead of time will make it easier to act if the nightmare becomes real.