FORT SHAFTER, Hawaii- After months of coordination and after receiving two prior instructional classes, members of the Special Reaction Team (SRT), 39th Military Police Detachment, 728th MP Battalion, 8th MP Brigade, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, evaluated the Soldiers and staff of Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion (HHBN), U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) during an active shooter training exercise Feb. 23, here.
It can happen anytime and anywhere. It incites fear and panic. Seconds count and when the fight or flight response kicks in, knowing how to react means the difference between life and death. Training for an active shooter event requires more than just reading a power point slide- it takes planning, strategizing and executing different scenario-based exercises to help determine the best course of action to deter a gunman and save lives.
"This type of training is extremely important because you never know when something like this can happen. We wanted realistic training so that in the event of an actual active shooter, our people will have gained a little bit of experience that will hopefully minimize that moment of panic and they can actually respond," said Capt. Cathleen Rush, operations officer in charge, HHBN.
After running through two different active shooter training scenarios, Rush said the training and feedback SRT provided, enabled her unit to actively measure the procedures they put into place, as well as, to assess how well the unit recalled those procedures.
Rush said, "We have a lot of junior Soldiers that work in this building and they have never really experienced any type of emergency situation. We wanted the junior leaders and Soldiers to know how to respond, so that they know the real measures they will need to undertake to make their place safer should something like this ever happen."
SRT Leader, 1st Lt. Joseph Weisenstine, and SRT Member, Sgt. David Padilla, both praised HHBN on their quick thinking and the strategies they used to deny the active shooter entrance into their offices.
"This is the first time that the doors were actually barricaded," said Padilla. "Blocking the doors with book cases and filing cabinets was good thinking."
While SRT members conduct hours of training on their own, honing their skills and practicing their tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs), Weisenstine said they are often missing one key element in their training and are always excited when they can include others.
"Having role-players and the Soldiers involved gives us that real-world dynamic we are looking for," said Weisenstine. "There's only so much room clearing you can do without that."
Rush said she was impressed with how motivated Weisenstine's teams were and how extremely easy it is to work with them.
"It's a mutual beneficial relationship that we look forward to continuing into the future," said Rush.
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