What To Do

If someone enters the building you are in and begins shooting, follow these steps.

Avoid

The most successful strategy for surviving an active shooter event is to avoid the situation altogether. This includes prevention strategies such as early identification, intervention, and awareness.

If you believe that someone may pose a threat to themselves or others, call for help immediately.

If the situation has not reached a critical stage, you may opt to call our non-emergency number (803-777-4215), let us know via the Rave Guardian Safety App, or use a referral system such as the university’s Student Care and Outreach Team. Always pay attention to your surroundings.

If something doesn’t seem right, act on your intuition and leave the area, if possible. Use your best judgment to avoid the threat by determining whether it would be safer to evacuate or remain inside.

If the threat is imminent or the attack has already begun, do not hesitate. Call 911 as you proceed to the safest location based on your assessment of what’s happening around you. The more distance and barriers you can place between you and the threat, the better. Do not activate fire alarms, as you may endanger others who would be safer remaining in their present location.

Deny

If getting away is difficult or impossible, you should still create distance and barriers between you and the threat.

• Secure yourself inside the most fortified room available and use anything available to barricade the door.
• If you can’t barricade the door, use objects such as belts, clothing or chairs to secure the door as best you can.
• Make yourself a “hard target”, by turning off the lights, remaining out of sight, and being quiet.
• Call 911 even if you can’t speak and are only able to leave an open line.
• Do not respond to requests to open the door or come out unless you are absolutely sure that it is law enforcement.
  
  

Defend

If you cannot Avoid or Deny, be prepared to Defend yourself using whatever means necessary. This is about your survival — do not fight fairly.

• Do anything you must to survive.
• Do not stand still – movement makes you a harder target to hit.
• Throw objects.
• Use weapons of opportunity (e.g. fire extinguishers, laptops, chairs, keys, pens, etc.) to attack sensitive areas such as the eyes, throat, and groin.
• If you have others with you, coordinate your attack from multiple points of opposition.
  
  

When Police Arrive

Show your hands and follow all commands. Uniformed officers may or may not be the first on scene. Plain clothes officers or officers wearing different colors and styles of uniforms may respond.

Officers not in uniform, will likely have some form of visual indication that they are law enforcement, such as a police badge on their belt or a patch on their shirt or sleeve.

 

Active Shooter Situation Videos