Seconds matter. Awareness and preparation matter. 

The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office, in partnership with DHR Health, invited the public to a free, two-hour Active Shooter/Critical Incident Training on June 8 at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance. Senior deputy Rick Garcia stressed the importance of awareness and preparation in his presentations. 

Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra said over 45,000 civilians across the state have been trained with sessions done at schools, churches, government offices and private businesses. Trainings can be further customized for each audience.  

Dr. Noel Oliveira of DHR Health welcomed everyone before turning the presentation over to Garcia. After a brief introduction, Garcia played “Prepare to Survive,” a short video emphasizing that most active-shooter events end within five minutes and 35 percent end in two minutes. 

“Pre-planning,” the voice on the video says, “will shorten your reaction time. Seconds matter.”

Garcia provided a timeline of school shootings, emphasizing the importance of learning from each one. 

“Just as the predator evolves every single time,” so must we, he said. 

“For years, all we’ve been doing is training police officers,’’ Garcia said. “But we have to train you because you’re there when it happens.” 

He discussed how cell phones and social media have led to situations where parents and others know what is happening before a call to 9-1-1 makes it through the dispatch chain. 

“That’s problematic,’’ he said. “We need to have a better plan to work together.”

Have A Plan

A proactive plan, Garcia said, begins with a natural reaction to a crisis, which is to run, hide or fight.

“What we see time and time again is a complete failure of these primitive instincts,” Garcia said. 

Waiting for a crisis to occur leads to disastrous results. Instead, always have an exit plan, be aware and be prepared, he said. 

“Remember what’s important, you, not your stuff,” he said. 

People who have not had training will run toward the police, but this prevents the police from doing their job. It’s better to run from danger, calling 9-1-1 once safe, he said. Garcia stressed the need for businesses, schools, churches and families to establish a reunification plan. In the event of a crisis, everyone knows to meet at a designated, off-site location. This avoids the unnecessary distress caused by searching for one another. If you can’t run, hide. 

“Be hard to reach,” Garcia said. “Create layers to barricade. We have to buy time.”

Silence your cell phone and remain silent to avoid drawing attention to yourself. 

If you can’t run and you can’t hide, fight. 

“Commit to your actions,” Garcia said.

Trauma Care

What law enforcement has learned is that lack of pre-planning and training results in unrealistic plans, he said. Women in Hidalgo County can prepare by taking the free, 12-hour women’s self-defense course offered by the sheriff’s office, Garcia said. 

The presentation then shifted to the importance of training in schools for all stakeholders: employees, students and parents. Garcia underscored the importance of parent involvement in their children’s schools, knowing what the safety plan is and their role in that plan. If your child’s school has not received training by the sheriff’s office, “you are going to invite us,” Garcia said. 

The final portion of the presentation focused on a brief but critical introduction to trauma medicine. Garcia again focused on how preparation changes outcomes.

A Combat Application Tourniquet, a one-handed tourniquet, can mean life or death not only during an active-shooter event, but also in home/industrial/hunting/car accidents.

“I can’t believe we live in a community where this is not common knowledge,” Garcia said. He demonstrated how easy the CAT is to use, stressing to “go high or die,” placing the tourniquet in the highest possible position on the arm or leg affected and to leave the tourniquet on and tightened, once applied.

Garcia showed the audience how to use hemostatic gauze to “quick clot” the bleed after applying the tourniquet and to wrap heavy dressing around the wound to prepare for transport. This led to Garcia’s two final pleas for preparation. First, he urged everyone to “build a kit,” including a CAT tourniquet, hemostatic gauze and heavy dressing. A complete kit, he explained, should cost just under $50. 

Public Training

Garcia urged everyone in the audience to sign up for a free, one-hour Stop the Bleed course, offered monthly at DHR Health. Learning the three techniques taught in this course can save lives. Follow the HCSO on Facebook and Twitter for information on additional trainings, and give them a call to schedule a training. More information on the tourniquet process is available on the last Thursday of every month at DHR Health. Call 956-362-5119 for more information, or email d.west@dhr-rgv.com. For active shooter resources, visit fbi.gov/survive.