Category Archives: school shooting

Wondering Which Security Controls Offer the Highest Protection for the Least Money?

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Or, put another way – how to get the Best Bang for the Buck with security.

Security Controls can be incredibly cost effective or astronomically expensive.  And when you’re faced with a facility or a school campus, or a system that has to be secured, but you also have a budget to keep in mind – what do you do?

The simple answer is ROI – Return on Investment.  This simple calculation compares the Cost of the Proposed Control to the Protection is Provides and that creates the magic ROI Number.

Here’s an example:   A hospital near the New Jersey shore wants to create a new emergency ops center.  They have the space,
but it would cost about $250,000 to build it out.  Here’s what we look at – how often would they use an emergency ops center?

Threat data shows that they would need to use it about 3-6

Operations Center (OPS)
Operations Center (OPS)

times a year, including severe storms, thunderstorms and hurricanes.

(After Hurricane Sandy, the hospital was closed for two days because they were not able to resume service right away.  As a result, the hospital lost about $2,000,000 per day because it could not bill for any services, none could be provided.)

So we take that lost $2,000,000 per day and say that if we could keep the facility open because we had a better operational center, we could easily save 2 days of revenue which is $4,000,000 for the 2 days, and if it cost us only $ 250,000, and saves us $ 4,000,000, that’s a Return on Investment of SIXTEEN to ONE, 16:1.

Say it saved us 3 days of revenue a year - that’s a ROI of TWENTY-FOUR to ONE, 24:1!

You can get more info by writing to me directly at caroline@riskandsecurityllc.com and requesting a webinar invitation,
or a copy of the video.

 

Why Everyone Needs Active Shooter Training – after Big Bear!

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Active Shooter is not a technical term, it basically means anyone with a gun who is actively) shooting at you!

They can be shooting randomly, getting ready to shoot themselves, shooting from a freeway overpass, or shooting in a populated area – if they havea gun, AND they’re shooting – then they’re an Active Shooter!

The sad story of cop Christopher Dorner and his shooting frenzy affected me personally, because I lived in the high mountains of Forest Falls, one town east of Big Bear, for years, and one of my sons attended tiny Fallsvale elementary school, which was locked down at the height of the craziness.

This shooter targeted his victims in some cases, and others were shot randomly.  All the victims had no idea of what was coming at them.

The Department of Homeland Security has really stepped up its program to train people to deal with the Active Shooter scenario, and, after Dorner, and Newtown, and Aurora, and Fort Hood, that maybe everyone should have active shooter training. Just in the last year alone, there have been 15 prominent active shooter incidents.

You can start at DHS and get videos, powerpoints, active shooter reference cards – for carrying in wallets, purses and book bags, as well as posters and training manuals.  Here’s the link:  http://www.dhs.gov/active-shooter-preparedness.

Why not train our school children, like we used to train for bomb drills, by jumping under the desks and covering our heads?   Why not have mandatory training for all teachers?  What about mandatory training for all healthcare workers?  And all IRS agents?  And threater goers? 

If you’re reading this – you can get ready yourself, become situationally aware, and pass on the favor!

 

Assessing School Security Takes on New Dimensions after Sandy Hook Tragedy

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After 30 years of security risk assessment experience and working with hundreds of schools, hospitals, facilities, I have to say that schools have not taken school security seriously.

Obviously there are the social pressures including mental health screening, proposed assault weapons bans, gun owner screening, etc., but these are the thing that won’t change overnight.  EVEN IF THEY ARE LEGISLATED, it takes time to implement, and
implementation may not be perfect.

TODAY IS THE DAY TO DO A SCHOOL VIOLENCE ASSESSMENT – not tomorrow, not after new gun laws, not after the holidays — TODAY.

There are indicators you can look for to see if your school is at risk of an active shooter incident.  And ways to be prepared if the unthinkable happens and an active shooter comes to your school.

Strong, simple access control is the most effective solution, and yes, this may mean that
a plain glass front door or window is not enough.  Glass is easily broken, and yes, it means that all staff must be a little more accountable, and it probably means a red phone or connection to the local police.

There is a simple school risk assessment program that will give guidance on what you need to do TODAY, what controls you need to implement, what threats are most likely to occur.  These can be accessed on the www.riskandsecurityllc.com website.

Some things are preventable, some aren’t.  But lockdown drills, alarm systems, and active monitoring of cameras are just a few of the 60 controls every school should have in place to protect our precious children.

And this comes from the grandmother who’s 3-year old twins turned 3 yesterday!