School simulates shooting
Updated: January 12, 2013
The Sandy Hook shooting put fear back into schools across the country. But the Danville school district is leaving that feeling behind and replacing it with confidence to handle this type of situation.
Police didn't allow cameras in the classroom for training, but they did let us watch. Banging doors, screams and simulated gun shots brought us all to a very frightening reality.
"It's mortifying. It's terrible."
Band director Joe Legg joined nearly 100 Danville police officers and teachers, for a six hour day of training.
"It's impossible to be over-prepared."
The first half of the day Danville police sat down with them. They had conversations about different scenarios and solutions of a shooting emergency.
But as the teachers experienced, talking can only teach so much.
"With the teachers we want to definetley hightened their pulse and their adrenaline to see how they act in an emergency situation."
Once the teachers left this room, they went through a realistic scenario.
"It doesn't happen in slow motion, it happens very fast."
Teachers went to classrooms like it was a normal day. Then with no notice they started hearing loud screams, someone banging on the door and gun shots.
"The first time I noticed my adrenaline level spiked. It went up instantly. Before I even had a chance to think, I was running for the external door."
They learned how to put those scenarios to work through real life stress.
"The first time the first gun is fired means the plan has gone out the window. There is no plan anymore. It's just how prepared are you? Your reaction time has to be almost instintanious. I think about my reaction time with 45 kids with instruments in front of me."
Teachers hope they never have to feel the terror teachers did in december. But say unfortunatley it's a possibility they can't ignore and have to prepare for.
"In the end you focus on the children in front of you," Legg said.
This drill isn't anything new for the danville school district. They've been doing it for ten years.
