Dep. Matt Warden Warden, right, playing the role of a shooter, speaks with Terri Himes of the county commissioners’ office as part of Thursday’s simulated active shooter training. Many of the participants wore masks to protect themselves from the simulated gunfire as part of the training.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell)
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At 2:22 p.m., the first of five shots rang out inside the Union County Office Building.
As the shooter roamed the halls, screaming that he was looking for “Dave,” he found nothing but empty offices.
That was the point.
The event was a drill. The shooter, Lt. Matt Warden of the Union County Sheriff’s Office. Warden and Dep. Rich Crabtree were there to teach Civilian Response to an Active Shooter Event (CRASE).
“It happens all over the place,” Crabtree said. “We need to stop thinking it’s not going to happen here in Marysville,” Crabtree said. “We need to stop living in denial.”
Thursday’s training was a combination of classroom learning as well as hands-on scenario and role play-based training designed to prepare civilians to respond in a time of crisis.
As part of the training, Warden walked through a variety of scenarios at the office building, firing blank rounds.
Ginger Yonak, human resources director for the county, said that even though she knew what was happening, when she saw Warden, initially she froze and wanted to help him thinking something was wrong.
Crabtree said that is the common reaction.
“We live in denial that it isn’t going to happen here,” Crabtree said. “And what happens when it does? We freeze. That’s why we do this training.”
The program teaches employees that if they can run, they should run, if they can escape they should escape, if they can hide they should hide. If they can barricade themselves in a room or closet, they should do that.
“The last thing we are going to want you to do is fight, but the reality is, if something happens, you might have to,” Crabtree said.
He stressed the most important thing to do is something.
“You have to do something. Don’t just sit there and be a victim,” Crabtree said. “If you do nothing, you are a sitting target. You are not helpless. What you do matters.”
He said that being aware of your surroundings and situation is important.
“Always be alert and aware of your surroundings. Situational awareness is a huge thing,” Crabtree said.
Crabtree said people should have a plan in the case of an emergency. He said the trainings give people an opportunity to practice that plan.
“Its better to see and learn it now,” said Yonak.
Office holders and employees questioned how to balance customer service with personal safety. Crabtree said there is no right answer.
He told employees to listen to peoples’ tone, to look at their hands, to read their body language and to judge if what they are saying makes sense. If something seems off, leave the area and call the sheriff’s office he explained.
“It is a different society we live in…Our job is to give you the tools to keep yourself safe,” Crabtree said.
Commissioner Chris Schmenk said she will respond differently.
“Two years ago, I know I, and probably Steve (Commissioner Steve Stolte), would have gone up and tried to talk to them and calm them down. Today, I ran.”
Crabtree said the point of the exercise is to make people “prepared not paranoid.”
Crabtree said that while the training is designed for workplace safety, the ideas are universal.
“The stuff that you are learning today is the same stuff you can take with you everywhere,” Crabtree said.
He encouraged offices to hold monthly meeting to talk about a safety plan.
“If you take five minutes, once a month, your chances of surviving go way up,” Crabtree.
And surviving is the ultimate goal, officials said.
“We just want you to take something from this, whether it’s when you are at the grocery store, the movies, wherever, or you are at work, it gives you the tools to survive something,” said Union County Sheriff Jamie Patton.