BROCKTON, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — More than 100 police officers and firefighters took part in an emergency training exercise at the Brockton Veterans Affairs Medical Center Friday.
The Brockton Police Department, Brockton Fire Department, VA Boston Emergency Management, and the VA Police trained to respond to an active shooter.
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"Last year, there were about 140 mass shootings in the United States alone," said Gregory Mota, emergency management specialist for VA Boston. "A year prior to that, there were roughly about 120. We have to prepare for it."
Mota told WBZ NewsRadio training exercises like these help prepare them for the real thing.
"We definitely train to find gaps, so we can identify those gaps and minimize them," Mota said.
Police officers used battering rams to open metal doors, while firefighters loaded bloody dummies into ambulances and VA nurses trained officers in how to stop the bleed.
"We’ve noted through various case studies that in an active shooter event, we can save lives through putting tourniquets on, so we practiced that," said Mota.
Firefighters also trained to enter buildings with police, which Mota noted is unusual during an active shooting.
"Case studies have found that victims were bleeding out when they could have been saved, so the City of Brockton developed a protocol for their firefighters to go in with a police officer," Mota said.
WBZ's Suzanne Sausville (@WBZSausville) reports.