Altus AFB conducts active-shooter exercise

  • Published
  • By Airman Klynne Pearl Serrano
  • 97th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
ALTUS AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  The 97th Air Mobility Wing conducted an active-shooter exercise June 20, 2012, in coordination with emergency responders from the City of Altus.

"The purpose of this exercise was to test our capabilities at Altus Air Force Base for an actual active-shooter incident and to ensure that all base personnel are prepared," said Gary W. Cobb, 97th Civil Engineer Squadron Readiness and Emergency Management flight chief.

"We had many meetings with the city officials from the Jackson County Memorial Hospital, Altus Emergency Management, county emergency management, and the Altus Sheriff's Department before we conducted the exercise," Cobb said.

"JCMH also has a requirement to deal with an active-shooter scenario," Cobb said. "Once JCMH found out that we were doing an active shooter exercise, they asked if they could tie their scenario in with ours."

This is also the first time the 97th Security Forces Squadron did a joint response, during an exercise, with the Altus Police Department.

"The exercise generated an opportunity to receive quality training," said Stanley Chisolm, 97th SFS Standardization Evaluations superintendent. "We just need to continue to work on communication and the joint process with Altus PD."

JCMH participated in this exercise by providing treatment to those who simulated injuries.

"In any disaster or crisis, caring for all patients, those who arrived from the event and those already in our care, remain our number-one priority," said Bonnie McAskill, JCMH director of public relations. "The exercise also allowed us to examine the management of our resources as we continued hospital operations."

McAskill could not stress enough the importance of these exercises.

"It is extremely important for our community that we remain ready and alert for any crisis," McAskill said. "Our relationship with Altus Air Force Base is strong and these exercises help us to practice and improve the communication between our two organizations."

All the exercises serve as training for the base.

"We take these exercises very seriously," Cobb said. "Push yourself as an individual, whatever role you're playing whether you are a disaster response force member, or just a person who is managing an office."

"Take these exercise scenarios seriously and ask questions during the exercise, not when it actually happens," Cobb said.