Sept. 05 -- Volunteer fire departments in Cumberland County are getting protective ballistic gear intended to protect them in active shooter situations.
Firefighters and emergency medical workers are getting trained to work with law enforcement officers to quickly remove victims of mass shootings. Previously, victims weren’t removed until the scene was secure, according to Freddy Johnson, president of the Cumberland County Fire Chiefs Association.
“This is a totally different approach to rescue,” Johnson said. “The old approach was totally ineffective.”
The association purchased the protective gear as part of its active shooter response plan. Johnson said the gear is capable of stopping rounds fired from an AK-47 or AR-15.
Commissioner Jimmy Keefe said the gear and the training represent a change in thinking about responses to shootings.
“Precious moments cost lives,” he said.
Keefe said volunteer fire departments are responsible for providing services to 100,000 citizens in the county.
“This new equipment will protect them as they protect us,” he said.
Wayne Lucas, chief of the Godwin-Falcon Fire Department, said attitudes about active-shooter situations have changed over the past four or five years, and there is better understanding that emergency workers must get to victims quickly. The ballistic protective gear and training are important steps for the county, Lucas said.
“This is necessary,” he said.
Johnson said the association bought 140 sets of protective gear. Each fire district will get at least eight sets. The districts that have more than one station will get more, he said.
The association spent $90,000 for the equipment. The money came from the 1.25-cent special fire district tax paid by residents in unincorporated areas of the county. The training already has started.
“We hope to have everybody trained by the first of the year,” Johnson said.
Johnson said officials need to be prepared for an active-shooter situation.
“I look at this not as a matter of if, but when,” he said. “If we’re going to be exposed to gunfire, we’ve got to have protective gear.”
Johnson said he’s confident that members of the volunteer departments will respond if needed.
“When that call for an active shooter comes in, every Cumberland County firefighter that I know will go above and beyond the call of duty to save a life,” he said.
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