corporate security

active shooter training

Four Active Shooter Attacks in Less than a Week – The Motives?

Leave a Comment / Active Shooter Response, Church Security, Corporate Security, Defend Systems, News, School Security

In less than a week, our country experienced four separate active shooter attacks that left eight people dead, including two of the gunmen, and seven others injured.  In a current news cycle that is dominated by politics, pandemics, and protests, these were but small blips on the radar of sensationalism that tends to be dominating our society.

On Tuesday, June 23rd, inside an Applebee’s restaurant located in St. Louis, a lone gunman opened fire on customers dining inside, striking three women, killing one.  The suspect had been in the restaurant for up to forty minutes prior to the attack, pacing around and acting strangely, according to reports.  He left the restaurant momentarily, then came back inside and began his rampage on the unsuspecting victims dining inside.  He fled the scene but was taken into custody the next day.  Currently, there is no known motive or connection between the shooter and the victims.

The second attack occurred on Friday, June 26th, at a Bunn-O-Matic warehouse facility in Springfield, Illinois.  The suspect, an employee of the facility, shot and killed three co-workers in a matter of minutes.  One of the victims was shot in the parking lot area while two others were shot and killed inside the facility.  The suspect fled the scene prior to the arrival of law enforcement but was later found dead in his truck from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The third attack occurred on Saturday, June 27th, at a Walmart Distribution Center in Red Bluff, California.  The suspect, a former employee who had been terminated in February, crashed his SUV into the facility, which then caught fire, and began his rampage utilizing an AR-type rifle.  During his assault, one person was killed, and four others were injured.  Responding officers arrived at the facility nearly ten minutes after the assault began and engaged the suspect in a gunfight and the suspect was mortally wounded during this exchange of gunfire.  Due to the fire inside the facility, law enforcement’s ability to clear the remainder of the building was severely delayed until fire personnel could respond and extinguish the blaze.

The fourth attack also occurred on Saturday, June 27th, at a peaceful protest being conducted at Jefferson Square Park in Louisville, Kentucky.  A lone gunman, seen here on video, took the firearm away from another protestor and began randomly firing at the crowd in the park.  One person was struck and killed before other bystanders returned fire and struck the shooter in the leg which stopped the attack.  The shooter was taken into custody a short time later with non-life-threatening injuries.

At this point, the motive of all four attackers remains unknown.  At the end of the day, does that really matter?  If we had known their motive prior to their attacks, would it have changed anything or stopped the attack from occurring?  The answer is NO.

Mass casualty and active shooter attacks have become an unfortunate but consistent manifestation of evil in American society.  While every organization should continue to focus on education of pre-attack indicators, it is incumbent on every organization, corporation, school, house of worship, and INDIVIDUAL, to get and remain prepared to respond to such an event.  The only way to respond decisively under critical stress is through prior training.  If your organization has not implemented such training and protocols, demand it.  Many risk managers and security personnel unfortunately still have the “Oh yeah, we need to do that” or, even worse, the “it won’t happen here” approach.  History has proven that these attacks can happen at any time and at ANY place.

Whether you are at work, the mall, a cookout, church, or simply out for a walk, being empowered with the knowledge and skills to survive any type of violent attack is an absolute life skill.  Make it your responsibility to obtain these skills.

For more information about how we can help your organization, visit us at www.defendsystems.com or call us at 615-236-6484.

Planning, Protocols & Persistence Saves Lives

Leave a Comment / Active Shooter Response, Corporate Security

Protocols, training and persistence saved the lives of countless children at Rancho Tehama Elementary School in Corning, California. Another lunatic gunman began selecting seemingly random targets to kill in an apparent psychotic rage.  He eventually set his sights on entering the elementary school at the Rancho Tehama Reserve but that attempt was thwarted by the simple yet effective decision to place the school on lockdown.

In the active shooter incident at Columbine High School, not a single locked door was penetrated by the shooters.  Further proof that something so simple can be so effective during an active shooter incident.  These gunmen typically come prepared to create the maximum amount of carnage with a large amount of ammunition and weaponry.  However, they typically do not come prepared, physically or mentally, to breach locked or fortified doors.  I often reiterate that these active shooters seek maximum carnage AND MINIMUM RESISTANCE.  The gunman in this case met immediate resistance at the school and immediately chose another path for his rampage.

Faculty members reported hearing gunfire approximately a quarter mile away from the school and immediately took action.  Their training and protocols instantly took over and allowed their brains to process the noise as gunfire instead of fireworks as is so often the case.

Many times our brains immediately try and process certain stimuli from our environment as something familiar and safe instead of processing it as something more sinister and unsafe.  What allows our brains to process these things correctly is training and planning in advance.  It is very difficult, if not almost impossible, for our brains to recall anything complicated during a critical incident.  Simply put, our stress response won’t allow it.  However, previous planning and training allows us to overcome several of our bodies’ stress responses during a traumatic event.  This is exactly how police officers and soldiers are able to operate successfully in the most critical and traumatic situations.  Many times they do not have time to think, they must simply respond to whatever they are faced with instantaneously with no time to process what they are seeing, hearing or feeling.

I cannot reiterate this enough: ALL schools, churches, and businesses need to have a plan to deal with critical incidents and potential intruders.  Having a plan is a phenomenal start, however you must also PRACTICE that plan.  The goal is to practice it enough that your brain and your body will both respond to an event instead of simply reacting.  A response is typically pre-planned where a reaction is simply a moment in time reflection of what your brain is processing at that moment.

In today’s world of lunatic psychopaths gunning down multiple random victims, it is time to shift our focus.  Instead of trying to predict the where and when of the next attack, we must focus on hardening potential targets as well as a implementing a planned response.  We would all love to have a solution to stop the next mass casualty incident but we all know that is not the reality.  These attacks will undoubtedly continue and we all have a responsibility to focus more on the safety and security of our schools, churches, homes and businesses.

To learn more about obtaining a security evaluation, training for a critical incident, or strengthening the security of your school, church, or business, please visit our website at www.defendsystems.com or give us a call at 615-236-6484.  We are passionate about helping all organizations achieve real security.

7 Deadly Reasons Why Every Organization Should Train for an Active Shooter Event

Leave a Comment / Active Shooter Response, Corporate Security

One historical fact about 2017 is that it was a grim reminder that active shooter and mass casualty incidents are on the rise in America.  The staggering number of casualties, the vast amount of locations, and the varied motivations of the attackers are all reasons that our mindset as a society should be changing.  It is still unthinkable to believe that enough evil exists inside some people to commit these heinous acts, but the seemingly endless news cycle of violence remains a stark reminder that there are truly evil people among us.

In the aftermath of every active shooter and mass casualty attack, most people immediately search for a motive and become hyper-focused on determining the “why”.  The truth is this, active shooters and terrorists all have varied motivations and triggers and attempting to determine what these are for each incident will not prevent the next tragedy.  Beyond the increasing number of attacks and the vast number of victims during the last year, what is even more alarming is the number of different locations where these incidents occurred.

HERE ARE SEVEN CRITICAL REMINDERS ABOUT WHY 2017 SHOULD MOTIVATE US TO ACTION:

  1. Eugene Simpson Stadium Park, Alexandria, VA – A lone gunman opened fire on lawmakers and aids who were participating in a baseball practice in preparation for an upcoming charity game.  Capitol police officers assigned to a security detail for Representative Steve Scalise returned fire and engaged the gunman.  Two Alexandria Police officers also arrived and continued to engage the suspect in a gunfight that lasted roughly ten minutes.  The suspect was shot by police and later died at the hospital.  A total of four victims were shot by the gunman, all of them survived.
  2. Aztec High School, Aztec, NM – A 21-year-old former student gained access to the school by disguising himself as a student during normal student arrival.  He wore a backpack which contained a 9mm handgun and made his way to the bathroom to prepare for his rampage.  After classes began he exited the bathroom and shot and killed two students.  The school went on immediate lockdown and his access to other students was thwarted.  The shooter then took his own life.
  3. Bronx-Lebanon Hospital, New York, NY – A former doctor and ex-employee of the hospital, armed with an assault rifle, opened fire on the 16th and 17th floor of the facility.  The gunman killed a doctor, wounded six other people, and attempted to set himself on fire before turning the gun on himself and taking his own life.
  4. UPS Facility, San Francisco, CA – A disgruntled employee armed with two pistols began shooting his coworkers during a morning meeting at the facility.  The gunman killed four people and wounded two others before being confronted by police at which time he took his own life.
  5. First Baptist Church, Sutherland Springs, TX – A single lunatic gunman opened fire on churchgoers who were attending Sunday morning services.  The gunman was eventually confronted and shot twice by a neighbor to the church as he was fleeing.  The suspect fled in his vehicle and eventually crashed at which time he shot himself in the head.  The suspect killed 26 people, ranging in age from 18 months to 77 years, and wounded 20 others in his rampage.  A total of fifteen empty magazines were located inside the church, each of which had a 30 round capacity.
  6. Fiamma Awning Company, Orlando, FL – A former disgruntled employee entered the business through a back door armed with a handgun and a large hunting knife.  He began shooting several former co-workers with most of them being shot in the head and some, multiple times.  Police arrived within two minutes and prepared to enter the building at which time the suspect shot himself.  A total of five people were shot and killed during the attack.
  7. Route 91 Harvest Festival, Las Vegas, NV – A lone gunman hell-bent on executing as many innocent people as possible, opened fire from his 32nd-floor hotel room that overlooked the Route 91 Harvest Festival. Utilizing several rifles and magazines, he shot indiscriminately into the crowd of concertgoers killing 58 people and injuring 546.  The shooter fired over 1,100 rounds during the attack and ultimately committed suicide as police officers closed in on his location.

These seven incidents are fundamental examples of why EVERY organization should be training to deal with an active shooter or mass casualty incident.  These cowardly attacks have no bias or consistent methodology as to the location or targeted victims.  Every shooter has a different motive or perceived reason as to why they rationalize their actions and they typically PLAN TO DIE.  The truth is this, it can happen ANYWHERE, ANYTIME and to ANYONE.  What’s your plan?

To learn more about improving your physical security, training for a critical incident, or obtaining an evaluation for your school, church, business, or home, please visit our website at contact us or give us a call at 615-236-6484.  We are passionate about helping all organizations achieve real security.

Scroll to Top