Police Teaching Community What to Do in Active Shooter Event

Police on Cape Cod hosted an active killer training session for members of the public Saturday morning in an effort to teach people how to protect themselves and others in a dangerous situation.

The training event took place just days after 17 students and staff were killed by a gunman in a Parkland, Florida, high school.

It was standing room-only at the Yarmouth Police Department as Lt. Kevin Lennon explained the three principles to keep in mind: avoid, deny and defend.

"It's a three-part process that we go through," Lennon said. "We're going to talk about situational awareness at home and while at work."

He said having a plan could save lives, and although confronting the attacker may seem daunting, it's an important safety tool.

"We talk about using a coffee pot, a chair, a stapler -- anything they can do to disrupt the suspect's timeline and get them off of what they're doing and that may give them enough time to run away," Lennon said.

One participant in Saturday's training was a school bus driver who feels a sense of responsibility to keep students safe. Jim Stovich said he's open to learning anything he can.

"Any pointers that could be brought up that might be advantageous to stopping a horrific action," he said.

Some participants were students and retirees, who said what they learned could be applied anywhere.

"It would be nice to know personal protection and procedures that we would have to go through if anything should ever happen," Shirley Towns, a retiree, said.

Lt. Lennon stressed Saturday's training was to help prepare the public, and to help them not live with fear.

"We shouldn't live our lives thinking that something is going to happen to us," he said. "This training talks about situational awareness, being aware of your surroundings, and if something happens, having the tools to react properly."

Yarmouth Police Department said Saturday's training isn't the first, and won't be their last, either. Police ask you to call the department at 508-775-0445 if you're interested in attending a future training session.