Recent Active Shooter Incidents Highlight the Tragic Reality that Communities Must Remain Vigilant in Preparing for, Responding to, and Recovering from these Horrific Threats to Public Safety

Buffalo, New York. Uvalde, Texas. In the span of just 12 days, the U.S. has witnessed two horrific active shooter events that, according to recent news reports, have claimed the lives of 31 people, wounded 18, and has left the country deep in mourning.

For the last couple of years, the national attention has focused much on the pandemic. But as the events of the last week and a half have illustrated, the safety of our communities remains in a fragile state. With the number of active shooting/hostile event situations again making headlines in both large cities and small towns across the country, we are reminded of this horrific threat. In addition to extensive pre-planning, every incident demands split second, life or death decision-making and coordination from responders and then follow up activity to help the entire community recover. That type of coordinated response only comes with a full system of planning in place.

NFPA provides the following resources to help in your efforts:

• NFPA 3000®, Standard for an Active Shooter/Hostile Event Response (ASHER) Program. This standard addresses all aspects of the process, from identifying hazards and assessing vulnerability to planning, resource management, incident management at a command level, competencies for first responders, and recovery.
• Toolkits to help mitigate the impact of a crisis or disaster, and provide the information responders need to help keep communities safe and prepared for all types of emergencies.
• NFPA 3000, Active Shooter/Hostile Event Response Program Specialist Online Training (2021)
• A free fact sheet that highlights the four concepts of NFPA 3000: whole community, unified command, integrated response, and planned recovery.
• A free NFPA 3000 roadmap to implementation.

These events are tragic and there are steps every community can take to prepare for, respond, and recover from an active shooter or other hostile event. By addressing these challenges together, we can turn our despair to forward-thinking action to better protect our communities.

Find these and other related resources on the NFPA 3000 news webpage.