Active Shooter Drill Evaluates Readiness of Local Agencies

Local authorities and personnel from in Baldwin Park held a drill on Thursday, simulating an active shooter situation with multiple victims and hostages in hospital premises.

Agents from the members of the county's Fire Department, and hospital personnel participated in the exercise.

According to Reyna del Haro, Director of Public Affairs at the hospital, the drill was meant to show how to coordinate and improve -if necessary- the tactical and emergency mechanisms of local agencies, in case an event of this nature takes place.

"We have recently seen many unfortunate shootings, and we experimented one ourselves nine years ago," said Del Haro, referring to an incident in 2003.

That year, a hospital patient shot and wounded a doctor, provoking a partial evacuation and deployment of authorities. The shooter took his own life afterward.

"We do these drills regularly, we learn a lot from them, how to improve our communication, what to do better, etc.," said Del Haro.

"We hope to never have such an incident, but if it happens, we want to be prepared," she added.

According to Lt. David Reynoso, of the Baldwin Park Police Department, the objective of having the drill was also to evaluate the readiness of the agencies in case of an incident of an "active shooter."

The scenario also included the activation of a Unified Command Center, an evacuation of some hospital areas, and it helped coordinate the finding resources or involvement of additional agencies for an incident of this kind.

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