SIMULATION — The Jefferson County Joint Vocational School and local safety forces tested emergency response during an active shooter drill on Wednesday. JVS School Resource Officer Randy Henry, far left, observes as county SRT Team members and Wintersville Police search the premises while Ohio State Highway Patrol officials were also on hand for the event. -- Contributed

BLOOMINGDALE — Jefferson County Joint Vocational School staged an active shooter drill with local safety crews on Wednesday in an effort to test response. 

The scenario was conducted with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Jefferson County 911 Director Rob Herrington and other local safety forces. Area EMS crews were staged outside the school as Sheriff Fred Abdalla Jr. and his deputies enacted the faux emergency. School staff alerted classrooms of the “intruder” over the public announcement system and a lockdown ensued as students and staff safely sheltered in place as part of their Alert Lockdown Inform Counter Evacuate training.  

The county SRT team scoured the building in search of the subject with assistance from the Wintersville Police Department, plus they aided in the evacuation of staff and students to a predetermined meeting site. After the subject was “apprehended,” students were escorted back to the school and classes resumed. School and emergency officials held a debriefing session following the scenario and leaders said they were pleased with the results. 

Abdalla said the exercise was vital to help students and staff learn what to do in case of an actual emergency. 

“I think the drill went very well,” said Abdalla. “We’ve been doing ALICE active shooter trainings at schools and we are going to continue to hold them both in school districts as well as communities and get citizens trained.” 

He thanked the JVS, Herrington, Wintersville Police Chief Lou Vandeborne and the other safety forces for their involvement. 

“The students acted mature and did a good job. I’m proud of the students and staff,” Abdalla added. 

Supervisor/Principal Andrew Long said staff underwent ALICE training during a professional development session in November and the drill put plans into motion, while another exercise may be planned in the future. 

“I think it was a good experience for the staff and students to practice our ALICE training,” said Long. “We learned a lot and it will allow us to be better prepared for the future.” 

Buckeye Local School Superintendent Scott Celestin and Maintenance Director Tony Panepucci were on hand to observe along with members of the Ohio State Highway Patrol and other officials, and Celestin said he gathered some fresh ideas for his district. 

“The point was to see it from a different perspective and to see what ideas we could come up with,” he commented. “We’re always looking to improve our safety procedures and protocols.”