A teacher played a key role in putting an end to a school shooting.
When a student at Mattoon High School in rural eastern Illinois opened fire in the cafeteria, Angela McQueen sprang into action, subduing the shooter and preventing him from wounding or injuring others. As a result of the physical education teacher’s quick action, just one student was injured by bullets and no one was killed.
Authorities pointed to training as contributing to McQueen’s successful takedown of the shooter.
“Lives were saved by the quick response of a teacher here,” Mattoon police Chief Jeff Branson said at press conference Wednesday evening, as reported in the Champaign, Illinois News-Gazette. “She had been trained, obviously, but in these scenarios, you just don’t know what happens until it happens.”
Training for emergency situations like active shooters or natural disasters may seem dull, repetitive or entirely unnecessary, but it is the key to success for response and risk reduction. An associate at a Dallas staffing firm realized the importance of her recent training when an active shooter went on a rampage in her office building, and she had to keep herself and several new employees safe.
What can your organization learn from the latest school shooting?
Don’t take training for granted. Make sure every member of your team is trained to respond in the case of any type of emergency – active shooter, fire, weather event, etc. It’s not enough to simply hand out a manual or give a PowerPoint presentation. Training should include active participation including role playing, walking through escape and shelter in place routes, and more.
Regularly review policies and procedures. Look for gaps in plans, and fill those gaps wherever possible. Take into account key learnings from other live situations, research, recommendations from other organizations and more.
Review safety systems regularly. Maintain current systems, and consider adding new ones.
Gunshot detection systems are a fairly new entry to the market. Much as a smoke or fire detection system automatically alerts building occupants to potential danger, gunshot detection systems automatically alert and respond to shots fired in a facility.
Learn more about our Guardian active shooter detection systems at an upcoming Live Fire event.