LANCASTER COUNTY, S.C. — Lancaster County authorities conducted active shooter training for first responders at Indian Land High School. On Thursday, 250 people participated in the training, including volunteers playing the roles of civilians to make the training realistic.
“You absolutely look at what happens in other places and you want to learn from other people’s mistakes," Sheriff Barry Faile said. "But there’s a lot of time and emphasis that goes into putting one of these scenarios together.”
It’s a realistic and intense training drill. Deputies have minutes to get inside, identify the threat and get civilians out alive.
Thankfully, in Lancaster County, these deputies haven’t had to use active shooter training, but the school shooting in Uvalde is adding a new sense of urgency to be prepared.
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“I’ve got every confidence in the world that if something occurred like that in our county, I think our local officials have a good plan to address it," Bryan Vaughn, the Safety and Transportation Director at Lancaster County Schools, said. "And I truly believe that we would not see a duplication of that.”
Vaughn said what makes this drill unique is that different agencies are training together.
Other safety measures coming to Lancaster County Schools this year include increasing the use of metal detectors, adding a clear bag policy for large events, and providing every law enforcement officer with a key fob giving them access to all schools in the district in an emergency.
“The [community's] expectation of law enforcement is to be prepared and be able to respond," Sheriff Faile said. "That’s what they want and it’s my responsibility to make sure that we provide that service."
Contact Indira Eskieva at ieskieva@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.