SGT. ERIC RADFORD, left, and Woodford County Sheriff Deputy David Clark put their radios on the same channel for active shooter training at Woodford County High School on July 14. (Photo by Bob Vlach)
VERSAILLES POLICE Lt. John Costigan, far left, and Det. Nathan Craig talked to VPD Sgt. Eric Radford, Woodford County Sheriff Deputy David Clark, hidden behind Officer Nathaniel Wakefield, back to camera, during active shooter training at Woodford County High School on July 14. (Photo by Bob Vlach)
A HOSTAGE SITUATION was one active shooter training scenario experienced by officers with the Versailles Police Department and Woodford County Sheriff Deputy David Clark on July 14 at Woodford County High School. Det. Nathan Craig portrayed the hostage taker in the scenario. (Photo by Bob Vlach)
By Bob Vlach
Woodford Sun Staff
Officers from the Versailles Police Department (VPD) were joined by school resource officers (SROs) and deputies from the Woodford County Sheriff’s Office for three days of active shooter training at Woodford County High School last week.
The trainings, where law enforcement officers responded to four different scenarios, were organized by VPD working in collaboration with Woodford County Public Schools (WCPS).
“It’s hands-on training. It’s about as close to the real scenario that you can have,” said WCPS Police Chief Steve Sutton.
He said having “a sense of reality” during the training scenarios was an opportunity for law enforcement officers from three agencies to learn together in WCPS’s newest school building.
These trainings were designed to “simulate real world,” said Versailles Police Chief Rob Young. Involving all three of the law enforcement agencies most likely to respond to an active shooter situation ensures “we’re all familiar with the tactics to be deployed,” he said.
“Kids shouldn’t be in school worrying about such things,” continued Young, “but we need to make sure that we’re prepared to respond to those types of incidents … should they occur.”
“These (trainings) are great,” VPD Lt. Brent McGee said, “because we get to work together … to provide the most effective response to any incident we may have.”
McGee was one of five instructors for active shooter training scenarios observed by the Sun on July 14. Participants and role players (portrayed by the instructors) used blank rounds – simulating the sound of gunfire – so officers and deputies could respond in the direction of an active shooter situation. Law enforcement officers participating in the training also used a special channel to ensure all radio communications did not leave the building.
After asking Sgt. Eric Radford, Officer Nathaniel Wakefield and Woodford County Sheriff Deputy David Clark to set their radios to that channel, Det. Nathan Craig, another instructor, told the Sun, “We want to be able to respond effectively (and) immediately … We’re immediately going to take action – and we want that to be the mindset of our officers.”
So later, when Craig watched Radford, Wakefield and Clark actively moving toward gunfire, he was pleased “because the sooner we can get to that active shooter threat, the sooner we can stop the threat.”
“Training like this,” said Radford, “is training to learn how to be calm in chaos. So, just trying to keep your heart rate down as best as possible, focusing on what the scenario or situation is and handling it accordingly.”
During a debrief following the training scenario, Craig talked to the participating officers and deputy about what students and teachers call different hallways or sections of their high school.
Getting law enforcement officers and other first responders more familiar with the layout of school buildings will benefit everyone, according to Logan Culbertson, director of student services and school safety coordinator for WCPS. Working through different scenarios is valuable to everyone because “we (get to) problem-solve together,” he said.
“… Split-second decisions,” he added, “are learned in these kinds of trainings, so that keeps everybody just a little bit safer.”
Young agreed, telling the Sun, “The scenarios themselves allowed the officers to be put in high-stress environments and forcing them to make split-second decisions.”
After each training scenario, officers were asked to justify why they responded to a situation as they did, Young said.
“… One officer may take an action that another officer didn’t, but his perspective on (a situation) was different,” he added. During these debriefs, Young said each officer can explain “why he did what he did.”
WCPS is currently taking a safety inventory of its current procedures and protocols to improve school safety for students, staff and the community, Culbertson said.
“We’re going to need all community partners, so we need to expand our collaboration” to include other first responders, he said.
Last week’s trainings were an opportunity for personnel from three different law enforcement agencies to be on the same page when responding to a real-world situation, so “we’re all familiar with the tactics to be deployed,” said Young, “… with the end goal (being) the safety of our schools and the kids that attend” our schools.
SROs will likely be the first to respond if an active shooter situation arises in a school. Like others in law enforcement, they are trained to “eliminate the threat. Period,” said Sutton.
“… It’s what we do, especially when it’s involving our kids.”