The Army Contracting Command and Expeditionary Contracting Command headquarters participated in an active shooter response exercise May 27.
"We are educating the ACC workforce to respond appropriately to an active shooter event should it occur here at work or someplace else," said Daniel Morgan, chief, ACC Protection Division, Operations G3/5. "This is our second active shooter response exercise in the past year. We conducted our first exercise while located on Redstone Arsenal and have now conducted one here in our new building."
Located in temporary offices off the installation, Morgan said different measures would be taken in the event of an incident.
"Frankly it was easier," said Morgan about conducting the exercise off the arsenal. "This is the third active shooter exercise I have been involved with since 2011, and it was great working with all of the emergency response agencies here in the Huntsville area. The Huntsville Police Department was great to work with and has offered to support us annually if we want them to do so."
In addition to the Huntsville Police Department, the Madison County and Marshall Space Flight Center 911 Call Centers participated.
"For this particular exercise we invited the Huntsville Police Department and they had one of their SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) teams participate so that both organizations could receive training," Morgan said. " The Madison County 911 Call Center and Marshall Space Flight Center's 911 Call Center were notified in advance of the exercise to prevent any calls for assistance that may have been made by ACC employees."
Morgan said a great deal of planning and coordination was required to develop the exercise. He said the focus was on providing individual employee training and collective leader level training during a table-top exercise. The table-top portion of the exercise involved the Huntsville Police, Fox Army Health Center, local hospitals, and the Redstone Arsenal Emergency Operations Center, as they would all be involved if a real shooting occurred in the work area.
"I think we've conducted a successful exercise if ACC employees walk away with a good understanding of what actions they should take if ever confronted by an active shooter situation," Morgan said.
He also said identifying strengths and weaknesses can strengthen the current training and emergency action plan and allow for corrective actions to improve both.
"Knowing what to do and what not to do in an event like this can help save your live and the lives of others," Morgan said.
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