BUTLER — Officers from the Ohio State Highway Patrol spent Wednesday morning in Butler working on a skill they hope to never use.
“Basically what we are doing is active shooter drilling,” said Michael Vinson, staff lieutenant for the OSHP. “They get training in the academy, but like anything, these types of skills are perishable. We like to train them periodically to keep them fresh in what they are doing.”
Officers from seven counties including Crawford, Richland, Ashland, Erie, Sandusky, Huron, Marion are participating in drills all week at Butler Elementary School.
Vinson said since the shooting at Columbine High Sin Colorado, the way law enforcement has been trained to handle active shooters has changed. He also noted at least 60 percent of his officers have five years on the job or less, making this refresher training vital.
“We’ve thrown some scenarios in that are a little different,” he said. “Based on what we’ve seen around the world as far as active shooters. Maybe they are on platforms (shooting). Recently, we had the event out in Vegas — right now we’re at a school, but we could be called out to anywhere.
“It could be a factory or a place of business. Yes, we’re training in a school, but we need to be prepared for anywhere.”
Troopers were not told what the situation was before the drills. As two vehicles entered the school parking lot, a sniper on the roof shot at them. The task was to recognize the situation, potentially find the shooter and get inside.
Vinson said the importance of this drill is awareness.
“There’s a reason people deer hunt from above. Deer don’t tend to look up. People don’t either,” he said. “We’re getting them to think outside the box, and neutralize that threat.”
Once inside, responders had to find their way to the gymnasium, where a state trooper was playing dead. The first responders went to check on him, came under fire. Then, officers were in charge of taking down the active shooter.
“We want to make sure that when our people are called, they can respond as well as other agencies,” Vinson said. “It’s all hands on deck. Let’s say something goes down in Huron County, there’s one or two people from Norwalk police department and one or two troopers.
“We have to train our troopers — and we are basically traffic enforcement — it’s very important we train our trooper to enter buildings and be prepared to stop a threat and save lives. That’s what it’s all about.”
Richland County law enforcement will hold a second active shooter drill in August, Lt. Amy Ivy said.
