Protective Actions for Active Shooter and Other Acts of Violence

Emergency plans for acts of violence should be established following national standards such as NFPA 1600 and applicable regulations including OSHA and state and local fire codes. Plans should include protective actions for life safety, threat and hazard specific procedures, defined roles and responsibilities, lines of authorities, an incident management system, and the identification and assessment of required resources. Implementation of plans should be accomplished through training, drills, and exercises.

Protective Actions for Life Safety

The emergency operations plan should define actions to protect life safety from foreseeable hazards. Terminology for protective actions has changed over time complicating common usage and understanding essential to prompt action. Review and agree upon common terminology within your organization, with building management and tenants, and with public safety responders.

The three basic protective actions for acts of violence are:

EVACUATION when there is a hazard such as a fire, bomb threat, or suspicious package inside the building and you must move to a safe location usually outside the building. “run” is the protective action to escape an armed perpetrator or active shooter inside a building.

LOCKDOWN (“hide”) when there is an armed perpetrator in the building or believed to be inside, but a safe path to escape is not available. This option may also be referred to as “Shelter-in-Place.” The term shelter-in-place was originally used to describe protection from a hazardous materials release outside a building. The term may also be used to describe sheltering from any hazard outside.

COUNTER (“fight”) when confronted with an armed perpetrator and you must take physical action to take down or distract a perpetrator to protect your safety or the safety of others.

For more information on prevention and deterrence of acts of violence as well as emergency response and recovery planning, read the Preparedness Bulletin: Acts of Violence. Be sure to check all of the Preparedness Bulletins, our lengthy list of curated hyperlinks to preparedness resources on the internet, and our comprehensive program self-assessment checklist. It includes more than 200 questions to help you evaluate your preparedness program.


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