Iowa City, IA
On Monday night, the scouts prepared themselves for an entirely different kind of scenario, and one they’ll hopefully never face. At a time when mass shootings have become an all-too-familiar occurrence nationally, Iowa City Police officials led about a dozen Scouts in an active-shooter training session in the basement of a downtown church. Instead of the usual scouting lesson on wilderness survival, Chief Sam Hargadine and Capt. Troy Kelsay instructed the students — ranging from sixth-graders to high school juniors — on how to survive if an armed assailant were to burst into their school or troop meeting. Iowa City Police regularly conduct active shooter sessions, known as ALICE training That means a person’s best shot of surviving an active shooter situation is often to be proactive, Kelsay said. “You shouldn’t be afraid to go out and do things,” Kelsay said. “I’m not afraid to go out and do things, and I see bad stuff happen all the time. But you should be aware of your surroundings, you should be prepared, and you should think through what you’d do.” Read more
