Officers from Bladen and surrounding counties participate in an Active Assailant Full-Scale Exercise held at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25.
Courtesy of the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
Officers from Bladen and surrounding counties participate in an Active Assailant Full-Scale Exercise held at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25.
Courtesy of the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
Officers from Bladen and surrounding counties participate in an Active Assailant Full-Scale Exercise held at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25.
Courtesy of the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
Officers from Bladen and surrounding counties participate in an Active Assailant Full-Scale Exercise held at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25.
Courtesy of the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
Officers from Bladen and surrounding counties participate in an Active Assailant Full-Scale Exercise held at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25.
Courtesy of the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
Officers from Bladen and surrounding counties participate in an Active Assailant Full-Scale Exercise held at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25.
Courtesy of the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
LAKE WACCAMAW — Officers from the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office participated in an active assailant full-scale exercise at East Columbus High School on Feb. 25. Agencies from several surrounding counties were present, along with community volunteers.
This training came almost three months following an active shooter hoax at East Bladen High School on Dec. 1, 2022. Some parents and students in the community expressed displeasure with the response from the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office in the initial aftermath of the incident.
The exercise guided law enforcement and volunteers through the process of intervening during an active shooter, something no one wants to think about, but must be prepared for regardless. Training such as this would ideally help officers remain calm during a shooting, and apprehend the shooter as quickly and efficiently as possible while protecting the students remaining in the school.
“We hope that we will never have to put this training to use, but if we do we will be ready,” stated the Sheriff’s Office in a Facebook post.