Story Archive

Active Misdirection

The report of an “active shooter” in an office building in Falls Church, Va., brought a large police response. People inside hunkered down in fear for 45 minutes, even though an email was sent to employees noting that it was a drill. “That email was distributed to another employee and that employee interpreted it as being real,” a police spokesman noted. Police said they had not been notified of the scheduled drill, and officials at the company should have done more to notify everyone that it wasn’t real. “Signage on every entry door, at every point,” suggested a security consultant who is also a police officer. “You want it to be very clear — active shooter training in progress.” (RC/WTTG Washington D.C.) ...OK, so are you all now clear about what to do before you go shoot up your workplace?