More than 400 people participated in a "mass casualty event" Wednesday in Northeast Tarrant County. Birdville ISD set up the active shooter drill, which included police, fire and hospitals.
"Rare is the case where we get all these organizations to come together at one big event and test what it is we're doing and how we work together," says North Richland Hills Police Chief Jimmy Perdue.
Teachers, counselors and administrators worked at the drill with some representing students.
"This exercise shows the commitment of our community and so many people around to the students of BISD and beyond. We're very grateful," says Birdville ISD Superintendent Gayle Stinson.
Stinson says planning now while kids are off for the summer can help different agencies develop a plan together so students can focus on education when they return.
"I can assure you all districts in the State of Texas have this as their priority," Stinson says. "We want the 5.4 million students in Texas to walk onto whichever campus they go to school, feel safe, secure and learn because that's what they're there for."
Birdville ISD has 23,000 students and schools in seven different cities. Perdue, the North Richland Hills police chief, says these drills can help agencies from different communities learn to work from a common strategy.
"We're going to learn a lot today. We're going to learn a lot to bring back to our organizations so we can learn to interact, coordinate and collaborate with one another," he says. "That's our goal today."
First responders say working with each other real-time in an ongoing scenario also helps them prepare if they have to respond to a real shooting.
"At the end of the day, it's just that life experience we wouldn't have any other day," says North Richland Hills Fire Chief Stan Tinney.
Birdville ISD says the drill also helps the district plan the logistics to reunite families after an emergency.
The Birdville ISD has school campuses in seven different North Texas cities, including North Richland Hills. And today a total of 32 different police, fire departments and hospitals are participating in a mass casualty drill to refine skills and work on communication among different agencies
Birdville ISD Superintndent Gayle Stinson says drills like this show how many people are working to make sure students at schools across texas stay safe so they can focus on their education.
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