Law enforcement doesn’t want to instill paranoia in the community, but Cultice said everyone should be prepared to know how to react to a shooter.
Two shooters opened fire at a holiday party in San Bernardino, Calif., on Dec. 2, killing 14 people and wounding 21 more.
“So we’ve got to be prepared and the more prepared we are the more success to (survive),” Cultice said.
There are tactics anyone can take to stay alive in a mass shooting situation, he said. He instructs the ALICE training for the sheriff’s office, which stands for: Alert, Lock down, Inform, Counter and Evacuate.
More than two dozen teachers and county employees went through the five-hour long training course Thursday.
First people should run to safety if they can. If they can’t, he said they should barricade any entrances so that the shooters can’t get in. And lastly distract the gunman and fight back, but fight with a purpose.
For the past four years the sheriff’s office has held training for schools in the county, Cultice said, and this year began the educational program for county employees.
“With things changing and the increase in active shooter and killer situations it was a needed plan,” he said.
Private organizations — such as churches and local businesses — have approached the ALICE trainers about teaching them what to do if a gunman were to attack in their offices, but organizers haven’t taken the program public.
The Clark County Sheriff’s Office hopes to be open the program to the public in the near future, Cultice said.
Experts suggest managers talk to their employees about what do to in safety situation.
Employees at the Clark County Board of Elections said they talk about safety in their workplace and hypothetical dangers that could arise.
“This is a possible threat for all of us and we need to be prepared for it,” said Matthew Tlachac, director of the board of elections.
People who went through the training Thursday said they felt more confident about facing a deadly situation.
“It’s enlightening,” said Marvin Jones, director of middle schools, alternative education and adult education for the Springfield City Schools District.
“To be in an actual situation where you have to react kind of goes back to that fight or flight response and I felt I had both today,” he said.
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