The Centralia Police Department participated in an active shooter drill at Centralia Junior High and Central Middle School on Monday.
Acting Police Chief Steve Whritenour says in light of recent national events, the emphasis was on first responders arriving at the scene of an active shooter scene.
“This was very important for our first responders coming to the scene of an active shooter, because of the fact over 70% of active shooters, the incident is over within 5 minutes. So it’s really refreshing for all of our patrol that when you are the first responder and first one on the scene, what do you do? And how you handle that active threat. That’s the main thing we are trying to drive home today.”
The Centralia Officers also worked with the Illinois Law Enforcement Alarm System (ILEAS) High-Risk Team which consists of members of law enforcement agencies from 36 counties in Central and Southern Illinois. ILEAS is designed to assist with barricaded subjects and clearing a building after an active shooting case ends.
Whritenour says an active shooting incident involves a three-step process, stop the threat, get to the victims to offer assistance, and protect yourself.
Retired Centralia Police Sergeant and current Central City Chief Jamie Ramsey helped lead the officers through the training. Whritenour notes they have trained heavily already for such a scenario, but he wanted to reach the large number of new officers with the information and refresh the veteran staff.
The Kaskaskia College Police Department also sent an officer to the training.
Whritenour is thanking Ramsey and the Centralia City Schools and Superintendent Craig Clark for allowing them to use the facility.
Classroom training for an active shooting situation. Photo by Pat Hodges.
