University officials, community partners engage in active shooter exercise
by Kathleen McCoy |
In response to the recent Virginia Tech shootings, officials of the University of
Alaska Anchorage, Alaska Pacific University, Providence Alaska Medical Center, Anchorage
Police Department, Anchorage Fire Department and the Municipality of Anchorage Office
of Emergency Management gathered on Wednesday, June 20 for a 3 hour exercise to discuss
their would be response to an active shooter on the UAA campus. The main goal of the
exercise was to review and evaluate UAA's emergency response plan and to reaffirm
contacts with supporting agencies. The workshop scenario involved a student gunman
on campus who took another student hostage. The group discussed step-by-step actions
each agency would take to control the situation, from overtaking the gunman, caring
for victims, communicating key information and arranging for grief counseling in the
aftermath. From the discussion, UAA pinpointed the strengths and weaknesses of its
existing plan, and developed action items to improve any potential weaknesses.
The UAA emergency response plan outlines the University's procedures for managing
emergencies that may threaten the health and safety, or disrupt the programs and activities,
of the campus community. The plan identifies department or individual positions that
are directly responsible for emergency response and critical support services, and
it provides a management structure for coordinating and deploying essential resources.
These responsibilities include preparedness and response to emergencies and disasters
that are both naturally occurring and man-made.
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