Active shooter response protocol

The Department of Homeland Security and the Bureau of Justice Administration have released guidelines on the recommended response to an active shooter event. That response protocol is expressed in the acronym ALICE – Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate.

- Alert authorities via a call to 911 when it is safe to do so.

- Lockdown the facility as much as possible.

Understand that this doesn’t just mean locking exterior doors. It means locking every inside door that can be locked. The idea is to limit the access of a gunman to targets inside a facility by confining him or her to a given space.

- Inform responding authorities via on-going communications to 911 emergency operators so they can relate the best intelligence information available to responding law enforcement. Also, keep co-workers informed of goings-on using any internal notification systems and emergency telephone trees.

- Counter the attack by fighting back if circumstances permit and there are the tools to do so.

- Evacuate. After the lockdown segment, at any time, if evacuation is a safe possibility, do so.

Schools and businesses from coast to coast have trained for this response option. In addition, many have made improvements, as well as structural and design changes, to their facilities to reduce the risk of an active shooter incident and, if one occurs, to mitigate or reduce the number of potential victims.