Demand for public shooting training on the rise
NORTH TEXAS (CBSNewsTexas) - Once reserved for police who were expected to stop a threat, planning and training for public shootings is becoming increasingly common in retail stores, offices and other workplace according to security experts.
The training was cited by a retail store manager in Allen on Saturday, who said she moved customers and employees into fitting rooms, turned off the lights and locked the doors when shooting started. She told CBS News Texas she had reviewed the drill with staff just days earlier.
Teegna Broadwater, whose Fort Worth company Tactical Systems Network provides consulting and active shooter training, said he's worked with warehouses, strip malls, manufacturing companies and more.
"Everyone is more hyper aware of the fact that something like this could happen, whether it be from an internal standpoint, or an external standpoint," he said.
While circumstances and location can lead to individualized plans, Broadwater said often he aims to simplify training, teaching employees the process of "Run, Hide, Fight."
It is sometimes those employees now who are asking managers for the training and procedures, he said, with the incidents becoming more common.