In light of the recent shootings in public spaces, especially in churches, the Southern Ohio Synod office has received inquiries about what congregations can do to prevent and defend themselves in the event of an active shooting event.
The following resources are provided by the United States Department of Homeland Security and Church Mutual Insurance. These are resources for you and your congregation to prayerfully consider and discuss. The Southern Ohio Synod Office of the Bishop cannot advise you regarding what action to take or not to take as these decisions must be made in coordination with local law enforcement, as well as congregational members.
See also resources on the ELCA webite at www.elca.org/Resources/Risk-Management.
Preparing for an Active Shooter Incident
Please go to the Federal Emergency Management (FEMA)/Homeland Security website and download,
Guide for Developing High-Quality Emergency Operations Plans for Houses of Worship – June 2013.
This guide covers how to prepare of all sorts of emergencies, not just active shooter incidents. It's a great resource to help you prepare for and deter emergencies that can effect any congregation and is worth the time to read the material.
The following takeaways are from the FEMA Document. Please note that many local law enforcement agencies offer active shooter defense training and may come to your congregation to hold the training. Always work with your local law enforcement first. They are trained to help and know the best ways to keep you safe.
Here are some basic takeaways from the FEMA document:
Develop a basic plan:
How to respond to an active shooter:
Should you want to have a security team:
The following are articles and videos from Church Mutual Insurance that may help your congregation start a helpful discussion on how you would like to proceed with a plan or not to proceed.
https://www.churchmutual.com/6421/Armed-Intruder
https://www.churchmutual.com/media/newtopics/armedintruder/CMIC_Armed_Intruder_Recap.pdf
https://www.churchmutual.com/media/riskreporter/pdfs/Risk_Reporter_3_24_17.pdf
https://www.churchmutual.com/3270/Security
https://www.churchmutual.com/201/Risk-Control-Webinars
https://www.churchmutual.com/index.cfm?ldp=ALICE
This information will continue to be available to congregations under the 'Congregations' tab in the 'Congregational Safety' section.