WESTLAKE, Ohio — Police officers rushed into a Westlake school on Tuesday as they went through several scenarios in which there was an active shooter.
"We tried to make this as realistic as possible," said Westlake Police Department captain Gerald Vogel.
Approximately 45 police officers will train at the Parkside Elementary School on Hilliard Blvd. thru Wednesday. Police, fire, and EMS trained for several hours on Tuesday. The first responders trained for a mass casualty incident or active shooter threat.
Vogel says the Westlake Police Department has trained for threats for more than five years. The officers spend hours training so they're on the same page when a incident occurs, according to Vogel.
"For years now, we have trained that the first officer on scene is gonna go in whether he's by himself or with a partner," said Vogel. "They're gonna go in and find who ever is doing these mass shootings and end it one way or another."
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While first responders train, students and staff are preparing to return to the classroom. Westlake City Schools told 3News there will be more training when they return.
"When we work with the police department on this mass casualty exercise we'll debrief afterwards and see where our holes are," said Westlake City School director of business affairs Dave Kocevar. "No plan is perfect, we want to make sure we realize where our vulnerabilities are and correct them."
The training will resume Wednesday morning.
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