Prepared for the worst
Local first responders get ‘active killer’ training at Lodi Memorial
Some 50 police officers and firefighters responded to the report of a shooter at Adventist Health Lodi Memorial Wednesday morning, and when the situation ended after about an hour, one was in custody.
While an “active shooter” incident with multiple victims has not occurred in Lodi, the city’s police department makes sure it will be prepared for such a scenario about every two years.
Wednesday morning was such an occasion.
The Lodi Police Department partnered with Adventist Health and the Lodi Fire Department to conduct an “active killer” training exercise at the hospital.
Once known as “active shooter” scenarios, the exercises have now been renamed and modified to prepare officers for threats regardless of the weapon used, or if a suspect is even armed.
Lt. Rick Garcia, spokesman for the department, said officers responded to a simulated active shooter at the hospital and were given a description of the suspect while “en route.”
Lodi officers were joined by members of the Galt Police Department while entering through Lodi Memorial’s main entrance at about 10:30 a.m.
Once inside, Garcia said officers engaged the threat and handled the situation. Firefighters from the Lodi, Woodbridge and Mokelumne districts soon entered the building to tend to victims.
According to radio traffic during the simulation, one suspect had been taken to the hospital’s emergency room.
Officers and firefighters then secured the scene, and all personnel were outside by about 11:15 a.m.
“The purpose of these is to train on how to respond to situations like this,” Garcia said. “Regardless of the location, the response is going to be the same. Ultimately, what we train is that we’re trying to save as many lives as possible.”
The department tries to conduct training simulations every two years, and the last one was conducted at Tokay High School in 2019. The hospital simulation had been planned for last year, but was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Garcia said the department tries to conduct trainings at various locations each year a simulation is scheduled, given “active killer” incidents in recent years have now begun taking place at sites other than schools, including supermarkets, churches and hospitals.
Hospital employees were working as the simulation was conducted, and signage was placed throughout the campus alerting them and patients the exercise was underway.
Officers and firefighters followed a designated path through the building to an isolated wing to conduct the simulation.
In addition, many hospital employees participated in the training as well.
Brooke McCullough, operations executive for the hospital, said Lodi Memorial staff simulated locking the facility
down, and emergency room staff simulated taking care of patients wounded during an active shooter incident.
She said the hospital conducts its own training drill throughout the year. But as staff had not simulated an active shooter incident in a number of years, Wednesday’s exercise was a refresher for staff, she said.
“I feel like this was a great opportunity for us to learn how to work together, as well as for them to understand our space if a real incident should occur,” McCollough said.
“I think it was very collaborative, and it will help us moving forward if any incidents like this should occur in Lodi.”
Lodi police and firefighters move to Millswood Middle School Wednesday afternoon for a smaller simulation on campus. A second day of training will take place at the school on July 6, and will be a larger simulation similar to this week’s at Lodi Memorial, Garcia said.