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Sabinal ISD trains for trauma


Jennifer Fry

Staff writer

Sabinal Independent School District called all of its employees – including administrative, support and janitorial staff members – for an in-depth look at potential crises situations and ways to handle them. The training was held Thursday from 1-3 p.m.

“We try to prepare for everything,” said Michael Neuman, director of special programs for the district, “but we know we won’t.”

One way the district has sought to prepare is to label each outside door on every campus building with large letter and number signs. Each building has been assigned a letter; beginning with the north entrance, each door is then assigned a number.

According to Neuman, the labels are for first-responders to know where to go in case of emergency.

“It’s just a helpful, quick reference,” he said.

Active-Shooter Training

Members of the Sabinal Police Department gave a short presentation about active-shooter situations and then simulated such a situation for staff members to witness. The training was originally planned to be more hands-on.

The purpose of the demonstration was so that staff members could watch what actually goes on and know what their role in the situation would be.

“Will it ever happen in Sabinal, Texas?” Officer Eddie Cruz from Sabinal PD asked rhetorically.  “I don’t know.”

The district plans to hold a longer training session later in the fall, in which district staff will need to react to a staged situation and be evaluated by superiors on their response.

“We hope that we will never have to use it,” said Cruz. “But at least we will be prepared if we do.”

Run, Hide or Fight

Before the demonstration, the department gave a short presentation informing staff members of what to do in a given situation. The three options are, in order of importance, run, hide and fight.

The presentation stressed the need, when running, to evacuate to an agreed-upon location and not just simply get into a personal vehicle.

“We don’t know if you’re a threat or not a threat,” said Officer Anna Marie Martinez, of the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Another thing to consider when running is to leave all personal belongings behind and to have an escape route beforehand.

“If you’re capable of escaping, you’re going to want to,” Martinez said. “If the best option is to hide, do it.

“You’re going to hide for a reason,” she went on. “You don’t want anybody to find you.”

Strategies for effectively hiding as outlined were to blockade doors, to turn off lights, to keep away from windows and doors, to lock windows and not to make noise. Officer Martinez likened it to hide-and-seek from childhood.

Another thing to consider when hiding is not to block one’s self from a potential exit. If opportunity arises to escape while hiding, it is prudent to take it.

As a last resort, staff members were encouraged to fight the intruder.

“You don’t want to give up just because he came in,” Martinez said. “You want to fight.”

She listed several things already on hand in the classroom which can be used as weapons – such as scissors, pencils and desks. Yet choosing to fight back comes with a cost.

“If you consent to fight,” she warned, “you must commit. It’s all-or-nothing; it’s full-on commitment. Pretty much it comes down to how much you want to go home.”

Throughout the presentation the officers reiterated that obeying police orders was crucial. This means having one’s hands up where PD can see them and repeatedly identifying one’s self if armed.

“I don’t care about your feelings,” said Officer Cruz. “I don’t care about anything but neutralizing the threat and minimizing the casualties.”

EMS Training

“Stop the Bleed,” a first-aid training put on by area emergency medical personnel, was conducted for district staff from 1-2 p.m. Its focus was on tourniquet training.

Piggybacking on the active-shooter demonstration acted out by Sabinal Police Department staff, the first-aid training reiterated that quick district staff response was crucial in an emergency situation.

The message of the training was simple: “You guys are the first responders.”

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