An active shooter drill will take place in the El Camino College Bookstore during spring break on Friday, April 12, from 9:15 to 10:30 a.m.
The drill will be restricted to the area and will happen inside the retail section of the Bookstore. The perimeter of the building will be taped off and signs indicating it is a drill will be displayed.
Campus police practice these drills every spring and summer break when there are fewer people on campus.
During the Tuesday, Feb. 20 Academic Senate meeting, El Camino Police Chief Michael Trevis said the goal of the drill is to make sure campus police and other agencies “respond quickly, swiftly and efficiently” to an active shooter situation.
“I wish I didn’t have to tell you that we need to do those drills but unfortunately we do. This is the world we live in today,” Trevis said during the meeting.
The El Camino Police Department will conduct this drill with the Gardena Police Department and other surrounding agencies.
In the exercise, drill volunteer students will be acting to help simulate an active shooter situation, where one student will act as the shooter and police officers will be dispatched to the area.
Trevis said the goal is to find the individual “as quickly as we can and take them into custody if we can. If not, then we are going to wind up having to do what we need to do.”
Phones on campus will receive a call about the drill and people who are subscribed to the Nixle Emergency Alert system will be alerted via text.
Trevis said campus police will seek input on the drill after it is completed, including what can be improved or changed about the exercise.
“The purpose of this [drill] is to keep us all safe,” Trevis said. “If [an active shooter situation] happens, we are not going to wait around. We go in and take care of the issue right away so we can prevent any injuries or anything like that.”
