Six minutes.
Six minutes is all it took for the shooter to take the lives of seventeen students and adults at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida on February 14th.
According to a timeline of events published by the Sun Sentinel, the accused killer entered the building at 2:21 p.m. and began firing. By 2:28, he had blended in with other students and exited the building.
As soon as the shooter began firing, the school went into a Code Red lockdown, which should have locked hallway doors and prevented his progress. But he had pulled the fire alarm, which overrode the door locks.
Even while taking cover in classrooms, teachers and students were frantically trying to call 911. For some, calls would not go through because there’s no cell phone service in those classrooms. Networks were also quickly overwhelmed, as is often the case in emergency events.
In the midst of the chaos surrounding mass shooting events, rapid response is crucial. According to a 2013 United States Department of Justice report, shooter situations last an average of 12.5 minutes, and it typically takes law enforcement an average of 18 minutes to respond. Shortening response time could save lives.
The Guardian indoor shot detection offered by Shooter Detection Services drops response time to as little as just five seconds. How? By using acoustic and infrared sensors to automatically detect and instantly report shots fired. The highly-accurate automated response eliminates reliance on human response during high-pressure, stressful and physically dangerous situations.
Guardian also integrates with a variety of other systems to show live video feed and floor mapping during an event, so shooters can be accurately tracked even from off site. Door locks can be triggered that trap a shooter in a particular area.
Guardian also can be integrated with communication systems to send out mass notifications via social media, audio systems, computer monitors, telephones, mobile devices and fire alarms systems.
ECT Services is pleased to offer the Guardian gunshot detection system developed by Shooter Detection Systems.
This video demonstrates the basics of the system.
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