Pa. Active Shooter Simulation Tests First Responders, School Staff

July 21--LINESVILLE -- Shots rang out in the cafeteria of Conneaut Area Senior High School on Wednesday at 9:05 a.m.

Chaos raged in the following moments as more than 30 volunteers fled the room in a blur, bolting down the hallway toward the school entrance. A teacher trailed behind them, shouting, "Go! Get out!" A smaller group remained behind, sprawled randomly on the floor between the scattered chairs and tables.

Everything happened so fast that it was hard to be sure exactly what had occurred. The cafeteria stood mostly empty after the rapid exodus, smoke from the blank rounds used in the shooter's gun hanging in the air. The smell of sulfur intensified the authenticity of the scene.

Thankfully, that scene was not authentic, just the product of an elaborate emergency response drill that capped a year of planning by Conneaut School District, the Crawford County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) and a variety of other organizations. Nonetheless, the situation eerily resembled the real sights that have become all too familiar following outbreaks of sudden and tragic violence in recent years.

A young man in one corner of the cafeteria appeared to be wounded in the leg, a simulated femur protruding from his thigh. Others remained motionless on the floor in blood spattered clothing while still others imitated the moans of pain that victims of an actual school shooting might experience.

"Is anyone coming?" asked a man from his prone position, an apparent bloody gash on his head.

"Somebody help us," said a woman's voice.

"When will they be here?" asked another.

The answer to that question turned out to be about 35 minutes later as members of more than 10 law enforcement agencies went through all of the procedures for this type of emergency. After neutralizing the two shooters in the scenario -- one in the cafeteria, another on the second floor of the building -- officers cleared both floors.

Only after the scene was secured were emergency medical service (EMS) personnel allowed in to attend to those playing the roles of shooting victims. By that time, a STAT MedEvac helicopter had landed on the baseball field to evacuate one of the victims and another helicopter, this one from the Pennsylvania State Police Aviation Unit, hovered over the school. Below, fire engines blocked the entrances to the campus and ambulances could be seen scattered around the high school.

Much of the past year's planning efforts were spent trying to anticipate every possible contingency for this kind of emergency. Details such as the improvised comments from the victims and hard to predict problems such as rapidly dying batteries in some walkie talkies helped make the drill as close to the real thing as possible.

Organizers were pleased with the results, both the successes and the problem areas. They emphasized that part of the point of the exercise was to encounter problems that would not otherwise be recognized.

"In every training situation, that's what we try to do -- learn from the mistakes that were made, correct and update our plans and make sure that we move forward in the best way possible," said Sgt. Michael Goss, acting station commander of the Pennsylvania State Police at Meadville and the leader of the law enforcement teams responding to the drill.

Crawford County EMA Director Allen Clark, who was on his fourth walkie talkie by the end of the event due to battery problems, cited communications as a primary challenge.

"Where it works, how it works -- is it equipment? Is it the training on that equipment?" he said. "We knew communication was a big one and thought we had it resolved, but there were some issues."

Conneaut School Board Vice President Dot Luckock was one of more than 50 volunteers, about 30 of them students, who participated in the drill. Luckock was in the cafeteria when the simulated shots were fired and was impressed by the realism of the event.

"I heard the shots and looked to make my exit out of the building and actually did not see anything," she said. "It makes for so much better planning to actually physically do an exercise like this. Many times things can look like they're going to work well on paper, but by the time you have all of the different aspects playing together, it turns out very differently."

Without both planning and live training like Wednesday's simulation, Luckock said, "You would have chaos, and the last thing we want is chaos or panic."

"We're always hoping we don't have to know this information," she said, "but it's much better to be proactive and have plans in place."

After the initial burst of activity in the cafeteria, order was quickly restored as first responders swarmed the school and proceeded methodically through room after room.

"I thought it worked out very well," Conneaut School District Superintendent Jarrin Sperry said. For Sperry, the drill was part of a larger emergency response plan that includes fire, tornado and lockdown drills throughout the school year.

"We can lock down the school in less than 30 seconds," he said as he commended the student volunteers who participated in Wednesday's exercise.

"Students are aware of what's going on in the world today," he said. "These are high school kids. There's a lot of scary things going on. For them to see law enforcement and work with them in a proactive manner is good for them -- it's good for all of us."

Goss seemed satisfied with the effort as a whole.

"There weren't really any surprises," he said. "There were a lot of things that went very well. And of course there were things that we need to improve upon.

"Overall, it was a very effective training and very effective cooperation among the many agencies involved," Goss said.

Bonnie Van Dusen, a teacher in the Conneaut district who played a cafeteria shooting victim in the drill, captured the thoughts of many of the participants in what she called a "great, great exercise."

"I think it's a good thing that they're doing this," she said. "I mean, it's sad we have to do it, of course."

Mike Crowley can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at mcrowley@meadvilletribune.com.

Copyright 2016 - The Meadville Tribune, Pa.