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St. Louis County police share video with tips for surviving 'active shooter' situationsAug 16, 2012 (St. Louis Post-Dispatch - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- ST. LOUIS COUNTY -- Police in St. Louis County have shared this video about surviving "active shooter" situations -- like recent mass shootings in Colorado and Wisconsin, or the 2010 ABB shootings in St. Louis. The video, which depicts a fake workplace shooting, shows a man dressed in black firing a shotgun at people in an office environment and bursting into a break room with a rifle. Employees react as they hear shots and screams in their workplace. Some flee, some hide, and some fight back when cornered. The video, called "RUN. HIDE. FIGHT. Surviving an active shooter event," suggests reacting in that order: run if possible, hide if you can't escape and fight back if you must. Later in the video, police in tactical gear enter the building, walking past motionless people in search of the shooter. The video isn't gory, but some fake blood can be seen in some scenes. The video, produced by authorities in Houston, has generated some controversy online. Some viewers claim an armed bystander could end the incident much sooner by starting with "fight." But St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch said the vast majority of people caught in such situations aren't armed and don't have the proper training to take down a shooter. "If you have a semi-automatic, the guy is three feet from you, and you're about to be killed, I know what I would do with proper training," Fitch said. "I would eliminate the threat." But without those things -- the proper weapon for the situation, an advantageous tactical situation, the right training -- the percentages change. "In most cases we've seen, there wasn't somebody armed there with proper training and (carrying a concealed weapon)," Fitch said. In that case, the run, hide, fight mantra is the best of course of action, he said. ___ (c)2012 St. Louis Post-Dispatch Visit the St. Louis Post-Dispatch at www.stltoday.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |