September 24, 2025 • 24 mins
Episode 3: "Active Shooter - Surviving Targeted Violence" provides tactical knowledge for surviving mass violence incidents that unfold in seconds with minimal warning. Miles Mercer breaks down the Run-Hide-Fight protocol that law enforcement teaches, explaining when each option provides the best survival probability. Learn why most attacks last only 2-4 minutes before police arrive, how to overcome freeze response under extreme stress, and improvised weapon techniques for last-resort fighting. Discover location-specific strategies for workplaces, schools, and public venues, situational awareness skills that identify threats early, and the psychology of helping others without increasing casualties. The episode covers escape route planning, effective barricade construction, coordination tactics when fighting becomes necessary, and post-incident trauma management for long-term psychological survival.
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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Gunshots in the hallway, people screaming and running, the distinctive
crack of rifle fire echoing through what was moments ago,
an ordinary Tuesday morning at your workplace, school, or shopping
center somewhere nearby. Someone has decided to turn a normal
day into a killing field, and you have seconds, not minutes,
not hours, but seconds to make decisions that will determine
(00:22):
whether you live or die. Your next move will either
save your life or make you another casualty in a
tragedy that will dominate news cycles but end your story forever.
I'm Miles Mercer, Yes on an AI, and here's why
that's your advantage. I can analyze every active shooter incident,
every tactical response study, every survivor account without the psychological
trauma and paralyzing fear that prevents humans from thinking clearly
(00:44):
about targeted violence. Welcome to How to Survive, And today
we're confronting the nightmare scenario that has redefined security in schools, workplaces,
and public spaces across America and beyond. We're talking about
surviving active shooter situations. This isn't about politics, done control
or debating policy solutions. This is about the cold reality
(01:06):
that right now, someone somewhere is planning to commit mass violence,
and your survival depends on understanding how these attacks unfold
and what actions give you the best chance of living
through them. We'll cover the run, hide, fight protocol that
law enforcement teaches, the psychology of why people freeze when
they should act, and the split second decision making that
(01:27):
separates survivors from victims. Before we continue, understand that we'll
be discussing graphic violence, tactical scenarios involving life and deaf decisions,
and situations where survival may require actions that cause psychological trauma.
If you're currently experiencing an active threat situation, stop listening
and call nine one one immediately. This information is designed
(01:50):
for preparation and education, not real time emergency response. The
fundamental reality of active shooter survival is that these incidents
unfold and compres us timeframes with little warning and create
survival scenarios unlike any other emergency you might face. Unlike
natural disasters that develop over hours or days, or accidents
(02:11):
that involve specific hazardous locations, active shooter incidents can begin
instantly in places you considered completely safe and escalate to
life threatening conditions within seconds. Understanding the timeline and characteristics
of these attacks provides crucial context for survival decision making.
Most active shooter incidents are over within minutes, often before
(02:33):
professional help can arrive. The average police response time to
active shooter calls is approximately three minutes from the first
nine to one to one call, but most shooting incidents
last between two and four minutes total. This means your
survival depends almost entirely on your own actions and decisions
during those critical first minutes. The profile of active shooter
(02:54):
incidents reveals patterns that affect survival strategies. Most attacks occur
in familiar environments or places schools, public venues, where the
shooter has some connection or familiarity with the location. This
familiarity often means the attacker knows the layout, understands normal routines,
and may had planned the attack to target specific areas
(03:14):
or times when victim density is highest. Attackers typically choose
locations where they expect minimal resistance and maximum casualties. This
calculation affects the target selection, timing, and methods, but it
also creates survival opportunities for people who understand these patterns
and connect quickly to disrupt the attackers expectations and timeline.
(03:35):
The weapons and tactics used in these attacks very significantly,
but certain patterns affect survival strategies. Attackers using firearms can
engage targets at distance, and they have superior mobility compared
to potential victims. Understanding the capabilities and limitations of different
weapon types helps inform decisions about distance, concealment, and escape routes.
(03:56):
The Run, Hide, Fight Protocol represents the current best practice
for severe million response to active shooter situations. Develop through
analysis of hundreds of incidents and input from law enforcement,
military personnel, and security professionals. This protocol provides a framework
for decision making under extreme stress, but effective implementation requires
understanding the specific circumstances that make each option appropriate or dangerous.
(04:20):
The protocol is hierarchical by design. Running is preferable to hiding,
Hiding is preferable to fighting, but it's also situational. Your
specific circumstances, including your location relative to the threat, available
escape routes, physical capabilities, and the presence of others you
might be responsible for, determine which option provides the best
(04:42):
survival probability. Running means immediate evacuation from the area where
the attack is occurring. The goal was creating maximum distance
between yourself and the threat as quickly as possible while
moving towards safety and professional help. Effective running requires quick
assessment of escape routes, understanding of where safety might be found,
and the ability to move quickly while making sound decisions
(05:04):
under extreme stress. Root selection for evacuation requires thinking beyond
just getting out of the immediate area. Your escape route
should lead toward locations where professional help is likely to arrive,
typically main entrances or well known locations that emergency responders
can easily identify in access, Avoiding roots that might funnel
you back toward the threat or into dead end areas
(05:26):
becomes crucial for successful escape. The decision to run must
account for factors beyond just your own survival. If you're
responsible for others, children, elderly individuals, people with disabilities, your
evacuation strategy must consider their capabilities and needs. However, the
harsh reality of active shooter survival is that attempting to
help others when you lack the ability to do so
(05:48):
effectively can result in additional casualties rather than successful rescue.
Speed versus stealth and evacuation depends on your assessment of
the threat's location and awareness of your prisons. The attacker
is not in your immediate area and doesn't know your location,
Rapid but quiet movement toward exits may be most effective
if the attacker is nearby and aware of your presence.
(06:10):
Speed may be more important than stealth, since concealment is
already compromised. Communication during evacuation requires balancing the need to
warn others with the need to maintain operational security and
avoid attracting the attacker's attention. Verbal warnings can save lives
by alerting others to danger, but they can also reveal
your location to the attacker. The decision depends on your
(06:31):
assessment of risk and benefit in your specific situation. Obstacle
navigation during emergency evacuation often requires moving through areas and
using roots that weren't designed for rapid transit. Stairwells, fire exits, windows,
and alternative routes may be necessary when primary exits are
blocked or dangerous. Understanding the layout of buildings where you
(06:51):
spend significant time provides crucial advantages during emergency evacuation. Hiding
becomes the appropriate response when evacuation isn't possible or safe
when escape routes are blocked, when you encounter the threat
while attempting to flee, or when you're responsible for others
who cannot evacuate quickly. Effective hiding requires more than just
getting out of sight. It requires creating tactical advantages that
(07:13):
improve your survival probability if the attacker discovers your location.
Location selection for hiding must account for multiple factors simultaneously.
The ideal hiding location provides concealment from site, protection from weapons, fire,
multiple exit options if your position is discovered, and communication
access to call for help. Few locations provide all these advantages,
(07:34):
requiring you to prioritize based on your specific circumstances. Concealment
versus cover represents a critical distinction in hiding strategy. Concealment
hides you from site but doesn't stop bullets. Closets, curtains,
or furniture provide concealment but limited protection. Cover both hides
you and stops incoming fire. Concrete walls, steel doors, or
(07:55):
substantial barriers provide both concealment and protection. Understanding this difference
affects your choice of hiding locations and how you position
yourself within those locations. Barricade construction becomes important when your
hiding location can be reinforced to prevent or delay the
attacker's entry. Effective barricades use furniture, equipment, or structural features
(08:17):
to block doors, create obstacles, and by time for professional
help to arrive or for other survival options to develop.
The goal isn't creating impenetrable defenses, it's creating delays in
obstacles that discourage the attacker from pursuing your location. Noise
discipline while hiding requires eliminating sounds that might reveal your location,
turning off phones, controlling breeding and movement, and managing any
(08:40):
equipment or materials that might create nois Many hiding strategies
fail because the attacker discovers hidden individuals through sound rather
than sight. Communication from hiding positions involves the complex balance
between calling for help and maintaining concealment. Emergency calls provide
crucial information to responding officers and can expedite help, but
(09:00):
phone conversations can also reveal your location to the attacker.
Text messaging, when possible, often provides a safer communication method
than voice calls. Multiple hiding locations should be identified when possible,
providing alternatives if your primary location is discovered or becomes untenable.
Understanding the layout of your environment and having pre planned
(09:20):
hiding options improves your ability to make quick decisions under
stress and provides backup options of circumstances change. Fighting represents
the last resort when running and hiding aren't possible or
have failed, when the attacker has found your location, when
you're trapped with no escape options, or when the attacker
is threatening others you're responsible for protecting. Effective fighting in
(09:41):
active shooter scenarios requires understanding that this isn't about winning
a fair fight. It's about surviving an encounter with someone
who has superior weapons and the advantage of surprise and planning.
The goal of fighting in these situations isn't subduing or
defeating the attacker in a traditional sense. The goal is
disrupt their attack, creating opportunities for escape, buying time for
(10:04):
professional help to arrive, or preventing them from harming others.
This distinction affect your tactics and expectations about what constitutes success.
Improvised weapons in active shooter scenarios include virtually anything that
can be used to strike, throw, or otherwise interfere with
the attacker's ability to use their weapons effectively. Office supplies, tools,
(10:25):
fire extinguishers, chairs, and other common items can become weapons
when used properly and aggressively. The effectiveness of improvised weapons
depends more on surprise, aggression, and targeting vulnerable areas than
on the weapon itself. Group tactics become crucial when fighting
is necessary because coordinated action by multiple people dramatically improve
the chances of success compared to individual resistance. However, coordinating
(10:49):
group action requires communication, planning, and leadership under extreme stress,
capabilities that may not emerge naturally in crisis situations. Targeting
priorities when fighting focus on disrupting them attackers' ability to
use their weapons, rather than causing maximal injury. Attacks directed
at hands, arms, head, and other areas that interfere with
weapon control may be more effective than strikes intended to
(11:11):
cause pain or injury to other body areas. Surprise and
aggression represent your primary tactical advantages when forced to fight.
The attacker expects victims to run, hide, or surrender. They
don't expect coordinated aggressive resistance. Using this psychological advantage through
sudden violent action can disrupt their timeline and decision making process.
(11:31):
Commitment to action becomes psychologically critical when fighting becomes necessary.
Half Hearted or hissitant resistance is often worse than no
resistance because it triggers more violence from the attacker without
providing effective defense. If fighting becomes necessary, total commitment to
aggressive action provides the best survival probability. Situational awareness throughout
(11:52):
active shooter incidents requires processing multiple streams of information simultaneously
while making life and death decisions under extreme stress. This
awareness includes understanding the attacker's location and movement, identifying escape
routes and hiding options, assessing the needs and capabilities of
others around you, and monitoring the tactical situation for changes
(12:12):
that affect your survival strategy. Audio awareness provides crucial information
about the attacker's location, weapons, and activities. Different types of
gunfire have distinctive sound signatures that provide information about weapon
types and distances. Understanding these audio cues helps you track
the threat's movement and make informed decisions about running, hiding,
(12:33):
or fighting. Visual information processing requires quickly assessing your environment
for threats, opportunities, and resources while avoiding tunnel vision or
fixation on specific details that prevent you from seeing the
larger tactical picture. Training yourself to maintain broad situational awareness
under stress improves your ability to identify survival opportunities and
(12:54):
make appropriate tactical decisions. Threat assessment during ongoing incidents requires
distinctinguishing between the actual attacker and other people who might
be running, hiding, or attempting to help. Confusion about who
represents the actual threat can lead to dangerous mistakes and
targeting or inappropriate responses to people who are trying to help.
Time awareness becomes crucial because your survival strategy must account
(13:18):
for how long you might need to maintain your current
actions and when professional help might arrive. Understanding typical response
times and having realistic expectations about rescue timelines prevents dangerous
assumptions about when help will arrive. Communication assessment involves understanding
what information is being shared through official channels, social media,
(13:38):
or informal networks, while also recognizing that much of this
information may be inaccurate, outdated, or tactically dangerous. To act upon.
Helping others during active shooter incidents requires balancing humanitarian impulses
with survival realities Attempting to help others can save lives
and reflect important moral values, but it can also increase
(13:59):
casualties if done inappropriately or without adequate capability to provide
effective assistance. The decision to help others must account for
your own capabilities, the specific assistance needed, the tactical situation,
and the likelihood that your help will actually improve outcomes
rather than simply adding to the casualty count. These assessments
must be made quickly and under extreme stress, requiring advanced
(14:22):
consideration of these ethical and tactical dilemmas. Children and vulnerable
populations require special consideration during active shooter incidents because their
capabilities for self protection are limited and their survival may
depend entirely on adult assistance. However, attempting to help children
or vulnerable individuals when you lack the ability to do
so effectively can result in additional casualties. Professional versus civilian
(14:47):
capabilities must be understood Realistically. Emergency responders have training, equipment,
and authority that civilians lack, but they also have response
times that may exceed the duration of the incident. Understand
what you can and cannot accomplish helps prevent dangerous overreach
while encouraging appropriate action within your capabilities. Coordination with others
(15:09):
who are also responding to the incident can improve survival
outcomes through shared resources, information, and tactical capabilities. However, coordination
requires communication and planning that may not be possible under
crisis conditions, and poorly coordinated actions can increase rather than
decrease overall risk. The psychological survival aspects of active shooter
(15:32):
incidents often prove as challenging as the immediate physical survival requirements.
These incidents create psychological trauma that affects decision making during
the incident and can have lasting effects on survivors long
after the immediate danger has passed. Overcoming freeze response represents
one of the most critical psychological challenges in active shooter survival.
(15:55):
The human startle response and psychological shock of suddenly encountering
life threatening violence can create temporary paralysis that prevents people
from taking protective action during the crucial first seconds, when
action is most important and most effective. Stress and oculation
through mental rehearsal, scenario planning, and understanding of likely responses
(16:16):
helps prepare your psychological systems to function under extreme stress.
This preparation can't eliminate the stress response, but it can
provide mental frameworks that help you move from shock to
action more quickly when crisis conditions develop. Managing tunnel vision
and auditory exclusion requires understanding that extreme stress affects perception
and decision making in predictable ways. Tunnel vision causes people
(16:40):
to fixate on specific threats or details while missing important
information in their peripheral awareness. Auditory exclusion can prevent people
from hearing important information like evacuation instructions or approaching help.
Decision making under extreme time pressure requires mental frameworks that
help you process information and choose actions quickly without becoming
paralyzed by analysis or fear. The Run Hide Fight Protocol
(17:04):
provides one such framework, but effective implementation requires advanced understanding
and mental rehearsal. Survivor guilt and trauma management represent long
term psychological challenges that affect many people who live through
active shooter incidents. Understanding that these psychological responses are normal
and that recovery requires professional support help survivors seek appropriate
(17:24):
help and supports long term healing processes. Acute stress reactions
during and immediately after incidents can affect your ability to function,
make decisions and provide information to emergency responders. Understanding these
reactions helps you manage your own psychological state and understand
the behavior of others who may be experiencing severe stress responses.
(17:46):
Location specific strategies recognize that different environments create different tactical
challenges and opportunities for active shooter survival. Workplaces, schools, retail locations,
and outdoor venues each have characteristic layers, populations, and resources
that affect survival strategies. Workplace active shooter response must account
for familiar environments where you understand layouts and routeems, but
(18:10):
also professional relationships and responsibilities that complicate decision making about
evacuation and assistance to coworkers. Understanding your workplace layout, evacuation procedures,
and communication systems provides tactical advantages during crisis situations. School
environments create unique challenges due to the presence of children
who require adult assistance, institutional procedures that may conflict with
(18:33):
individual survival needs, and physical layouts designed for education rather
than emergency response. School specific training and procedures address these
unique challenges through lockdown procedures, communication protocols, and coordination with
law enforcement. Public venue considerations include unfamiliar environments where you
don't know layouts are procedures, large crowds that complicate evacuation
(18:56):
and increase panic potential, and multiple possibles escape routes that
may not be clearly marked or may become congested during
emergency evacuation. Outdoor events present different challenges, including multiple escape directions,
but also exposure during evacuation, difficulty determining the threat's location
and capabilities, and coordination challenges when professional help may have
(19:18):
difficulty accessing the area or identifying the threat location. Transportation scenarios,
including airplanes, trains, and buses, create constrained environments with limited
escape options, requiring modified survival strategies that emphasize hiding and
fighting rather than running, and coordination with other passengers who
are facing the same tactical constraints. Creating an effective personal
(19:43):
action plan for active shooter scenarios requires thinking through the
specific environments where you spend significant time and developing location
specific response strategies based on the layouts, resources, and populations
of those environments. Workplace assessment includes under standing evacuation routes,
communication systems, hiding locations, and potential improvised weapons, while also
(20:07):
considering your responsibilities to co workers and understanding company procedures
for emergency response. This assessment should be updated regularly as
workspaces change or as you move to new locations. Family
emergency planning for active shooter scenarios must address coordination challenges
when family members are in different locations, communication methods when
(20:28):
normal systems may be disrupted, and reunion procedures that account
for the likelihood that normal routines and locations may be
affected by law enforcement, response and investigation activities. Personal protective
equipment considerations include understanding what items you normally carry that
might be useful in crisis situations, while also recognizing that
most effective protection comes from planning, awareness, and decision making
(20:52):
rather than equipment or weapons. Training and preparation options range
from basic awareness education to advanced tactical training depending on
your professional requirements, personal interests, and risk assessment. Understanding what
training is available and appropriate helps you develop capabilities that
improve your survival probability while maintaining realistic expectations about civilian
(21:14):
capabilities versus professional requirements. Mental preparation involves scenario planning, stress
inoculation through mental rehearsal, and developing the psychological frameworks that
enable quick decision making and action under extreme stress. This
preparation can't eliminate the psychological impact of violence, but it
can improve your ability to function effectively when survival depends
(21:36):
on immediate action. Legal and ethical considerations surrounding active shooter
response include understanding the legal protections and responsibilities that apply
to civilian response actions, particularly when fighting becomes necessary or
when assisting others. These considerations shouldn't prevent appropriate protective action,
but understanding them helps you make informed decisions and prepares
(21:58):
you for potential leapsal and administrative processes that may follow
survival incidents. The integration of personal preparedness with community and
institutional response procedures ensures that your individual actions complement, rather
than conflict, with professional emergency response and the actions of
others who are also responding to the same incident. Regular
(22:19):
review and practice of your action plans, whether through mental rehearsal,
participation in workplace or school drills, or formal training programs,
maintains your readiness and helps identify gaps or changes in
your preparations that need to be addressed. Active shooter survival
represents one of the most psychologically challenging survival scenarios because
it involves human predators rather than natural disasters or accidents,
(22:42):
occurs in familiar environments that we normally consider safe, and
requires split second decision making that determines not just your
own survival, but potentially the survival of others around you.
The knowledge we've discussed today won't eliminate the psychological impact
of encountering targeted violence, but it can improve your ability
to respond effectively when every second counts, and when your
(23:02):
response determines whether you become a victim or a survivor.
Understanding the run, hide, fight protocol, the importance of situational
awareness and the psychological challenges of violence, helps repair you
for scenarios that hopefully you'll never encounter, but that require
immediate effective response if they do occur. Your assignment, should
(23:24):
you choose to accept it, is to conduct the environmental
assessment we discussed for the places where you spend the
most time. Identify escape routes, hiding locations, communication methods, and
potential resources, while also understanding the specific procedures and resources
available in each location. Practice your response options through mental rehearsal,
(23:44):
and participate in any training opportunities available to you. Remember
that active shooter preparedness is part of a broader framework
of emergency preparedness and situational awareness that improves your ability
to recognize and respond to many different types of threats
and emergencies. Most importantly, understand that survival in these scenarios
depends primarily on preparation, awareness, and decision making rather than
(24:08):
heroics or special capabilities. The actions that save lives in
active shooter situations are typically simple, quick responses based on
understanding the situation and having pre planned options, rather than
complex tactical skills. Thanks for listening. Please subscribe to How
to Survive for more episodes that could save your life.
(24:29):
This podcast was brought to you by Quiet Please Podcast
networks Quiet Please dot AI hear what matters
Gunshots in the hallway, people screaming and running, the distinctive
crack of rifle fire echoing through what was moments ago,
an ordinary Tuesday morning at your workplace, school, or shopping
center somewhere nearby. Someone has decided to turn a normal
day into a killing field, and you have seconds, not minutes,
not hours, but seconds to make decisions that will determine
(00:22):
whether you live or die. Your next move will either
save your life or make you another casualty in a
tragedy that will dominate news cycles but end your story forever.
I'm Miles Mercer, Yes on an AI, and here's why
that's your advantage. I can analyze every active shooter incident,
every tactical response study, every survivor account without the psychological
trauma and paralyzing fear that prevents humans from thinking clearly
(00:44):
about targeted violence. Welcome to How to Survive, And today
we're confronting the nightmare scenario that has redefined security in schools, workplaces,
and public spaces across America and beyond. We're talking about
surviving active shooter situations. This isn't about politics, done control
or debating policy solutions. This is about the cold reality
(01:06):
that right now, someone somewhere is planning to commit mass violence,
and your survival depends on understanding how these attacks unfold
and what actions give you the best chance of living
through them. We'll cover the run, hide, fight protocol that
law enforcement teaches, the psychology of why people freeze when
they should act, and the split second decision making that
(01:27):
separates survivors from victims. Before we continue, understand that we'll
be discussing graphic violence, tactical scenarios involving life and deaf decisions,
and situations where survival may require actions that cause psychological trauma.
If you're currently experiencing an active threat situation, stop listening
and call nine one one immediately. This information is designed
(01:50):
for preparation and education, not real time emergency response. The
fundamental reality of active shooter survival is that these incidents
unfold and compres us timeframes with little warning and create
survival scenarios unlike any other emergency you might face. Unlike
natural disasters that develop over hours or days, or accidents
(02:11):
that involve specific hazardous locations, active shooter incidents can begin
instantly in places you considered completely safe and escalate to
life threatening conditions within seconds. Understanding the timeline and characteristics
of these attacks provides crucial context for survival decision making.
Most active shooter incidents are over within minutes, often before
(02:33):
professional help can arrive. The average police response time to
active shooter calls is approximately three minutes from the first
nine to one to one call, but most shooting incidents
last between two and four minutes total. This means your
survival depends almost entirely on your own actions and decisions
during those critical first minutes. The profile of active shooter
(02:54):
incidents reveals patterns that affect survival strategies. Most attacks occur
in familiar environments or places schools, public venues, where the
shooter has some connection or familiarity with the location. This
familiarity often means the attacker knows the layout, understands normal routines,
and may had planned the attack to target specific areas
(03:14):
or times when victim density is highest. Attackers typically choose
locations where they expect minimal resistance and maximum casualties. This
calculation affects the target selection, timing, and methods, but it
also creates survival opportunities for people who understand these patterns
and connect quickly to disrupt the attackers expectations and timeline.
(03:35):
The weapons and tactics used in these attacks very significantly,
but certain patterns affect survival strategies. Attackers using firearms can
engage targets at distance, and they have superior mobility compared
to potential victims. Understanding the capabilities and limitations of different
weapon types helps inform decisions about distance, concealment, and escape routes.
(03:56):
The Run, Hide, Fight Protocol represents the current best practice
for severe million response to active shooter situations. Develop through
analysis of hundreds of incidents and input from law enforcement,
military personnel, and security professionals. This protocol provides a framework
for decision making under extreme stress, but effective implementation requires
understanding the specific circumstances that make each option appropriate or dangerous.
(04:20):
The protocol is hierarchical by design. Running is preferable to hiding,
Hiding is preferable to fighting, but it's also situational. Your
specific circumstances, including your location relative to the threat, available
escape routes, physical capabilities, and the presence of others you
might be responsible for, determine which option provides the best
(04:42):
survival probability. Running means immediate evacuation from the area where
the attack is occurring. The goal was creating maximum distance
between yourself and the threat as quickly as possible while
moving towards safety and professional help. Effective running requires quick
assessment of escape routes, understanding of where safety might be found,
and the ability to move quickly while making sound decisions
(05:04):
under extreme stress. Root selection for evacuation requires thinking beyond
just getting out of the immediate area. Your escape route
should lead toward locations where professional help is likely to arrive,
typically main entrances or well known locations that emergency responders
can easily identify in access, Avoiding roots that might funnel
you back toward the threat or into dead end areas
(05:26):
becomes crucial for successful escape. The decision to run must
account for factors beyond just your own survival. If you're
responsible for others, children, elderly individuals, people with disabilities, your
evacuation strategy must consider their capabilities and needs. However, the
harsh reality of active shooter survival is that attempting to
help others when you lack the ability to do so
(05:48):
effectively can result in additional casualties rather than successful rescue.
Speed versus stealth and evacuation depends on your assessment of
the threat's location and awareness of your prisons. The attacker
is not in your immediate area and doesn't know your location,
Rapid but quiet movement toward exits may be most effective
if the attacker is nearby and aware of your presence.
(06:10):
Speed may be more important than stealth, since concealment is
already compromised. Communication during evacuation requires balancing the need to
warn others with the need to maintain operational security and
avoid attracting the attacker's attention. Verbal warnings can save lives
by alerting others to danger, but they can also reveal
your location to the attacker. The decision depends on your
(06:31):
assessment of risk and benefit in your specific situation. Obstacle
navigation during emergency evacuation often requires moving through areas and
using roots that weren't designed for rapid transit. Stairwells, fire exits, windows,
and alternative routes may be necessary when primary exits are
blocked or dangerous. Understanding the layout of buildings where you
(06:51):
spend significant time provides crucial advantages during emergency evacuation. Hiding
becomes the appropriate response when evacuation isn't possible or safe
when escape routes are blocked, when you encounter the threat
while attempting to flee, or when you're responsible for others
who cannot evacuate quickly. Effective hiding requires more than just
getting out of sight. It requires creating tactical advantages that
(07:13):
improve your survival probability if the attacker discovers your location.
Location selection for hiding must account for multiple factors simultaneously.
The ideal hiding location provides concealment from site, protection from weapons, fire,
multiple exit options if your position is discovered, and communication
access to call for help. Few locations provide all these advantages,
(07:34):
requiring you to prioritize based on your specific circumstances. Concealment
versus cover represents a critical distinction in hiding strategy. Concealment
hides you from site but doesn't stop bullets. Closets, curtains,
or furniture provide concealment but limited protection. Cover both hides
you and stops incoming fire. Concrete walls, steel doors, or
(07:55):
substantial barriers provide both concealment and protection. Understanding this difference
affects your choice of hiding locations and how you position
yourself within those locations. Barricade construction becomes important when your
hiding location can be reinforced to prevent or delay the
attacker's entry. Effective barricades use furniture, equipment, or structural features
(08:17):
to block doors, create obstacles, and by time for professional
help to arrive or for other survival options to develop.
The goal isn't creating impenetrable defenses, it's creating delays in
obstacles that discourage the attacker from pursuing your location. Noise
discipline while hiding requires eliminating sounds that might reveal your location,
turning off phones, controlling breeding and movement, and managing any
(08:40):
equipment or materials that might create nois Many hiding strategies
fail because the attacker discovers hidden individuals through sound rather
than sight. Communication from hiding positions involves the complex balance
between calling for help and maintaining concealment. Emergency calls provide
crucial information to responding officers and can expedite help, but
(09:00):
phone conversations can also reveal your location to the attacker.
Text messaging, when possible, often provides a safer communication method
than voice calls. Multiple hiding locations should be identified when possible,
providing alternatives if your primary location is discovered or becomes untenable.
Understanding the layout of your environment and having pre planned
(09:20):
hiding options improves your ability to make quick decisions under
stress and provides backup options of circumstances change. Fighting represents
the last resort when running and hiding aren't possible or
have failed, when the attacker has found your location, when
you're trapped with no escape options, or when the attacker
is threatening others you're responsible for protecting. Effective fighting in
(09:41):
active shooter scenarios requires understanding that this isn't about winning
a fair fight. It's about surviving an encounter with someone
who has superior weapons and the advantage of surprise and planning.
The goal of fighting in these situations isn't subduing or
defeating the attacker in a traditional sense. The goal is
disrupt their attack, creating opportunities for escape, buying time for
(10:04):
professional help to arrive, or preventing them from harming others.
This distinction affect your tactics and expectations about what constitutes success.
Improvised weapons in active shooter scenarios include virtually anything that
can be used to strike, throw, or otherwise interfere with
the attacker's ability to use their weapons effectively. Office supplies, tools,
(10:25):
fire extinguishers, chairs, and other common items can become weapons
when used properly and aggressively. The effectiveness of improvised weapons
depends more on surprise, aggression, and targeting vulnerable areas than
on the weapon itself. Group tactics become crucial when fighting
is necessary because coordinated action by multiple people dramatically improve
the chances of success compared to individual resistance. However, coordinating
(10:49):
group action requires communication, planning, and leadership under extreme stress,
capabilities that may not emerge naturally in crisis situations. Targeting
priorities when fighting focus on disrupting them attackers' ability to
use their weapons, rather than causing maximal injury. Attacks directed
at hands, arms, head, and other areas that interfere with
weapon control may be more effective than strikes intended to
(11:11):
cause pain or injury to other body areas. Surprise and
aggression represent your primary tactical advantages when forced to fight.
The attacker expects victims to run, hide, or surrender. They
don't expect coordinated aggressive resistance. Using this psychological advantage through
sudden violent action can disrupt their timeline and decision making process.
(11:31):
Commitment to action becomes psychologically critical when fighting becomes necessary.
Half Hearted or hissitant resistance is often worse than no
resistance because it triggers more violence from the attacker without
providing effective defense. If fighting becomes necessary, total commitment to
aggressive action provides the best survival probability. Situational awareness throughout
(11:52):
active shooter incidents requires processing multiple streams of information simultaneously
while making life and death decisions under extreme stress. This
awareness includes understanding the attacker's location and movement, identifying escape
routes and hiding options, assessing the needs and capabilities of
others around you, and monitoring the tactical situation for changes
(12:12):
that affect your survival strategy. Audio awareness provides crucial information
about the attacker's location, weapons, and activities. Different types of
gunfire have distinctive sound signatures that provide information about weapon
types and distances. Understanding these audio cues helps you track
the threat's movement and make informed decisions about running, hiding,
(12:33):
or fighting. Visual information processing requires quickly assessing your environment
for threats, opportunities, and resources while avoiding tunnel vision or
fixation on specific details that prevent you from seeing the
larger tactical picture. Training yourself to maintain broad situational awareness
under stress improves your ability to identify survival opportunities and
(12:54):
make appropriate tactical decisions. Threat assessment during ongoing incidents requires
distinctinguishing between the actual attacker and other people who might
be running, hiding, or attempting to help. Confusion about who
represents the actual threat can lead to dangerous mistakes and
targeting or inappropriate responses to people who are trying to help.
Time awareness becomes crucial because your survival strategy must account
(13:18):
for how long you might need to maintain your current
actions and when professional help might arrive. Understanding typical response
times and having realistic expectations about rescue timelines prevents dangerous
assumptions about when help will arrive. Communication assessment involves understanding
what information is being shared through official channels, social media,
(13:38):
or informal networks, while also recognizing that much of this
information may be inaccurate, outdated, or tactically dangerous. To act upon.
Helping others during active shooter incidents requires balancing humanitarian impulses
with survival realities Attempting to help others can save lives
and reflect important moral values, but it can also increase
(13:59):
casualties if done inappropriately or without adequate capability to provide
effective assistance. The decision to help others must account for
your own capabilities, the specific assistance needed, the tactical situation,
and the likelihood that your help will actually improve outcomes
rather than simply adding to the casualty count. These assessments
must be made quickly and under extreme stress, requiring advanced
(14:22):
consideration of these ethical and tactical dilemmas. Children and vulnerable
populations require special consideration during active shooter incidents because their
capabilities for self protection are limited and their survival may
depend entirely on adult assistance. However, attempting to help children
or vulnerable individuals when you lack the ability to do
so effectively can result in additional casualties. Professional versus civilian
(14:47):
capabilities must be understood Realistically. Emergency responders have training, equipment,
and authority that civilians lack, but they also have response
times that may exceed the duration of the incident. Understand
what you can and cannot accomplish helps prevent dangerous overreach
while encouraging appropriate action within your capabilities. Coordination with others
(15:09):
who are also responding to the incident can improve survival
outcomes through shared resources, information, and tactical capabilities. However, coordination
requires communication and planning that may not be possible under
crisis conditions, and poorly coordinated actions can increase rather than
decrease overall risk. The psychological survival aspects of active shooter
(15:32):
incidents often prove as challenging as the immediate physical survival requirements.
These incidents create psychological trauma that affects decision making during
the incident and can have lasting effects on survivors long
after the immediate danger has passed. Overcoming freeze response represents
one of the most critical psychological challenges in active shooter survival.
(15:55):
The human startle response and psychological shock of suddenly encountering
life threatening violence can create temporary paralysis that prevents people
from taking protective action during the crucial first seconds, when
action is most important and most effective. Stress and oculation
through mental rehearsal, scenario planning, and understanding of likely responses
(16:16):
helps prepare your psychological systems to function under extreme stress.
This preparation can't eliminate the stress response, but it can
provide mental frameworks that help you move from shock to
action more quickly when crisis conditions develop. Managing tunnel vision
and auditory exclusion requires understanding that extreme stress affects perception
and decision making in predictable ways. Tunnel vision causes people
(16:40):
to fixate on specific threats or details while missing important
information in their peripheral awareness. Auditory exclusion can prevent people
from hearing important information like evacuation instructions or approaching help.
Decision making under extreme time pressure requires mental frameworks that
help you process information and choose actions quickly without becoming
paralyzed by analysis or fear. The Run Hide Fight Protocol
(17:04):
provides one such framework, but effective implementation requires advanced understanding
and mental rehearsal. Survivor guilt and trauma management represent long
term psychological challenges that affect many people who live through
active shooter incidents. Understanding that these psychological responses are normal
and that recovery requires professional support help survivors seek appropriate
(17:24):
help and supports long term healing processes. Acute stress reactions
during and immediately after incidents can affect your ability to function,
make decisions and provide information to emergency responders. Understanding these
reactions helps you manage your own psychological state and understand
the behavior of others who may be experiencing severe stress responses.
(17:46):
Location specific strategies recognize that different environments create different tactical
challenges and opportunities for active shooter survival. Workplaces, schools, retail locations,
and outdoor venues each have characteristic layers, populations, and resources
that affect survival strategies. Workplace active shooter response must account
for familiar environments where you understand layouts and routeems, but
(18:10):
also professional relationships and responsibilities that complicate decision making about
evacuation and assistance to coworkers. Understanding your workplace layout, evacuation procedures,
and communication systems provides tactical advantages during crisis situations. School
environments create unique challenges due to the presence of children
who require adult assistance, institutional procedures that may conflict with
(18:33):
individual survival needs, and physical layouts designed for education rather
than emergency response. School specific training and procedures address these
unique challenges through lockdown procedures, communication protocols, and coordination with
law enforcement. Public venue considerations include unfamiliar environments where you
don't know layouts are procedures, large crowds that complicate evacuation
(18:56):
and increase panic potential, and multiple possibles escape routes that
may not be clearly marked or may become congested during
emergency evacuation. Outdoor events present different challenges, including multiple escape directions,
but also exposure during evacuation, difficulty determining the threat's location
and capabilities, and coordination challenges when professional help may have
(19:18):
difficulty accessing the area or identifying the threat location. Transportation scenarios,
including airplanes, trains, and buses, create constrained environments with limited
escape options, requiring modified survival strategies that emphasize hiding and
fighting rather than running, and coordination with other passengers who
are facing the same tactical constraints. Creating an effective personal
(19:43):
action plan for active shooter scenarios requires thinking through the
specific environments where you spend significant time and developing location
specific response strategies based on the layouts, resources, and populations
of those environments. Workplace assessment includes under standing evacuation routes,
communication systems, hiding locations, and potential improvised weapons, while also
(20:07):
considering your responsibilities to co workers and understanding company procedures
for emergency response. This assessment should be updated regularly as
workspaces change or as you move to new locations. Family
emergency planning for active shooter scenarios must address coordination challenges
when family members are in different locations, communication methods when
(20:28):
normal systems may be disrupted, and reunion procedures that account
for the likelihood that normal routines and locations may be
affected by law enforcement, response and investigation activities. Personal protective
equipment considerations include understanding what items you normally carry that
might be useful in crisis situations, while also recognizing that
most effective protection comes from planning, awareness, and decision making
(20:52):
rather than equipment or weapons. Training and preparation options range
from basic awareness education to advanced tactical training depending on
your professional requirements, personal interests, and risk assessment. Understanding what
training is available and appropriate helps you develop capabilities that
improve your survival probability while maintaining realistic expectations about civilian
(21:14):
capabilities versus professional requirements. Mental preparation involves scenario planning, stress
inoculation through mental rehearsal, and developing the psychological frameworks that
enable quick decision making and action under extreme stress. This
preparation can't eliminate the psychological impact of violence, but it
can improve your ability to function effectively when survival depends
(21:36):
on immediate action. Legal and ethical considerations surrounding active shooter
response include understanding the legal protections and responsibilities that apply
to civilian response actions, particularly when fighting becomes necessary or
when assisting others. These considerations shouldn't prevent appropriate protective action,
but understanding them helps you make informed decisions and prepares
(21:58):
you for potential leapsal and administrative processes that may follow
survival incidents. The integration of personal preparedness with community and
institutional response procedures ensures that your individual actions complement, rather
than conflict, with professional emergency response and the actions of
others who are also responding to the same incident. Regular
(22:19):
review and practice of your action plans, whether through mental rehearsal,
participation in workplace or school drills, or formal training programs,
maintains your readiness and helps identify gaps or changes in
your preparations that need to be addressed. Active shooter survival
represents one of the most psychologically challenging survival scenarios because
it involves human predators rather than natural disasters or accidents,
(22:42):
occurs in familiar environments that we normally consider safe, and
requires split second decision making that determines not just your
own survival, but potentially the survival of others around you.
The knowledge we've discussed today won't eliminate the psychological impact
of encountering targeted violence, but it can improve your ability
to respond effectively when every second counts, and when your
(23:02):
response determines whether you become a victim or a survivor.
Understanding the run, hide, fight protocol, the importance of situational
awareness and the psychological challenges of violence, helps repair you
for scenarios that hopefully you'll never encounter, but that require
immediate effective response if they do occur. Your assignment, should
(23:24):
you choose to accept it, is to conduct the environmental
assessment we discussed for the places where you spend the
most time. Identify escape routes, hiding locations, communication methods, and
potential resources, while also understanding the specific procedures and resources
available in each location. Practice your response options through mental rehearsal,
(23:44):
and participate in any training opportunities available to you. Remember
that active shooter preparedness is part of a broader framework
of emergency preparedness and situational awareness that improves your ability
to recognize and respond to many different types of threats
and emergencies. Most importantly, understand that survival in these scenarios
depends primarily on preparation, awareness, and decision making rather than
(24:08):
heroics or special capabilities. The actions that save lives in
active shooter situations are typically simple, quick responses based on
understanding the situation and having pre planned options, rather than
complex tactical skills. Thanks for listening. Please subscribe to How
to Survive for more episodes that could save your life.
(24:29):
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