RENO COUNTY— Hutchinson Police, Reno County EMS and other emergency agencies all gathered to do active shooter training at Hutchinson High School. The exercise has been going on throughout the week.
The police department goes through active shooter training at the schools each summer and rotates among the schools so they have a familiarity with each building.
The day started with a briefing, followed by a breakout session where police, fire, EMS and dispatch all gather and go over procedures, tactics and drills. In the afternoon, all entities gather to do two simultaneous exercises. One deals with an active shooter and how to take such a subject down. The officers are not told of what to expect or what they will find in each situation. They also use soft ammunition during the exercise. The other exercise deals with how to rescue victims, remove them from the building and triage them for treatment of injuries. The day ends with an assessment of the exercise.
Hutchinson Police Chief Jeff Hooper says the drills are a necessary step to deal with active shooter situations in schools. He said he wanted the public to know that they are as prepared as they can possibly be to deal with any situation that could arise.