Calhoun County holds active shooter drill ahead of new school year

Multiple agencies take part in real world exercise

CALHOUN CITY, Miss. (WCBI) – As a  new school year is set to begin, a local sheriff wanted to make sure law officers are ready to respond in case the unthinkable happens.

Although the 911 radio dispatch said the shots fired call was an exercise, the scene at Calhoun City High School was very realistic.

Calhoun County Sheriff Greg Pollan and EMA Director Randy Skinner coordinated this drill, involving agencies from across the area and the state.

“You’re never going to do everything right, but we want to find out what we messed up and fix those things,” Pollan said.

The drill included three separate scenarios involving multiple shooters.

Calhoun County school resource officers, neighboring police, and sheriff’s deputies all took part.

Communication was an issue, as Pollan was unable to establish radio contact with a deputy who had made entry and was searching for the suspect.

“Communication is a huge thing these days, if radios break down, if they don’t work, how dispatch will handle it,” Pollan said.

This drill extends outside the campus. First responders had nearby streets blocked off and paramedics were waiting until the scene was safe to go in, the goal was to make everything as realistic as possible.

“This has been a team effort, no one agency has been in charge of it,  this is when everybody comes together to protect our children,” Pollan said.

The agencies will take part in a debriefing to see what worked, and where improvements are needed.

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