TALLAHASSEE, Fl. (WTXL) -- Even when everything seems quiet in Tallahassee, it doesn't mean the city isn't prepared if an event like San Bernardino occurred there.
For instance, consolidated dispatch would send a call out to those closest to the threat, no matter what agency. And their main priority would be to stop the threat.
"Our police department practices on these types of situations all the time, actually", said David Northway of the Tallahassee Police Department (TPD), "We do training with our patrol officers, all of our sworn police officers. We also do training with other area agencies so that in case a TPD officer, an LCSO (Leon County Sheriff) officer, and an FSU officer show up at the scene, what are they all going to do?"
An example many are familiar with is the Strozier Library shooting a year ago. Though no victims were killed, what would the response have been if many more were injured?
Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare (TMH) has procedures set in place in case of an event with mass casualties. "We set up alternate care sites. And we triage the patients according to their acuity", said Philip Doyle, Director of Public Safety and Emergency Management at TMH. "So if there are less severe patients who have minor injuries, things like that, we may send them over to our Northeast Emergency Center."
And, if you find yourself in a dangerous situation waiting for help, having a plan ahead of time can go a long way.
"In the event of an active shooter, they're [victims] going to have to take care of themselves for a short amount of time", said Northway. "Now is the time to think about that. If you don't think about it before it happens, you're going to get yourself into a circular reasoning: 'Should I stay or should I run?' So plan now; what you would do, what you feel most comfortable with.
