Police to present CRASE program July 25

The Euclid Police Department has taken on the task of preparing area civilians how to respond to an active shooter event.

The department will present a CRASE (Civilian Response to Active Shooter Event) program from 10 to 11:30 a.m., July 25, at Lincoln Electric Welding &Technology Center, 22800 St. Clair Ave. in Euclid.

The free event is sponsored by the Euclid Chamber of Commerce.

CRASE was created by the The Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center based in Texas and was built on the Avoid, Deny, Defend strategy developed by ALERRT in 2004.

It provides strategies, guidance and a proven plan for surviving an active shooter event. Topics include the history and prevalence of active shooter events, civilian response options, medical issues and considerations for conducting drills.

The presentation is being offered based on the requests of several Euclid businesses which contacted the police department asking for help with policies, procedures and training on active shooting situations, according to Kate McLaughlin, the department’s community policing specialist.

Individuals and businesses in Cuyahoga and Lake counties are welcome to attend.

“If you have ever thought to yourself ‘What would I do if caught in a situation where someone is threatening me and others with a weapon?’ then this presentation is highly recommended,” McLaughlin said.

“I never thought that my duties in crime prevention would be to teach people how to survive active shooter incident,” she added. “In today’s society this is a reality for all individuals. It is not only law enforcement officers that need to prepare, civilians also need to prepare . ... I like the CRASE presentation because it not only covers what you should do, it examines disaster response psychology explained by Amanda Ripley in her book “The Unthinkable: Who Survives when Disaster Strikes.” The program was previously presented on April 4 at Euclid Public Library and was very well received, McLaughlin said. Many who were at the event requested additional presentations so that others could attend and benefit from the provided information.

Among comments from those who attended the presentation in April were that they never realized the options available to survive such situations and that it would now be unlikely that they would go to public places again without thinking about situational awareness.

In the last two years there have been 50 active shooter incidents in the U.S. with four occurring in Ohio. Seventeen occurred in a business environment, four in health care and three in government, according to the FBI.

The FBI defines an active shooter as one or more individuals actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area. Implicit in this definition is the shooter’s use of one or more firearms.

All planning to attend are asked to RSVP to Kate McLaughlin at kmclaughlin@ cityofeulcid.com or 216-289-8449. Space is limited.

SUBMITTED Members of the Euclid Police Department present the CRASE (Civilian Response to Active Shooter Event) program to an audience at the Euclid Public Library in April.