b'Then,suddenly,youhearafaintpoppingsound.Youincident. You will not have time to consult policy manuals, FOGHORN FOCUS pause, listening more intently. It comes againthis time indiscuss options with the crew, or radio headquarters. Your rapid succession. Your mind races through possibilities likeresponse must be instinctive.a search engine scanning a database. It is broad daylight; it cannot be fireworks. An equipment malfunction, perhaps?We spend countless hours training and drilling for emer-But nothing in the engine room makes that sound. Thesegencies precisely because the time to think about how to thoughts fire through your mind in under two seconds.respondtoanactiveshooterincidentisnotduringthe Then another popthis time unmistakably a bang, andevent itself. These scenarios must be rehearsed repeatedly much closer than before. so that when the unthinkable occurs, your body and mind automatically shift into action.In an instant, you recognize the sound: gunshots. Some-one is shooting on board your vessel. What will you do?While this type of emergency shares some conceptual sim-How will the crew respond? How will you keep passen- ilarities to fire responseparticularly the goals of control gers safe? Your heart pounds, your palms sweat, and timeand containmentthe comparison ends there. Fire behaves seems to slow. predictably;peopledonot.Nonetheless,theobjective remains to isolate the threat and minimize casualties. As training takes over among the crew, they begin directing As training takes overpassengers away from the sound of gunfire, ushering them to safer areas. Humans acting under stress may be unpre-among the crew, they dictable, but trained crew members responding in unison can be a powerful force for safety.begin directing passengersDEFINING AN ACTIVE SHOOTERThe FBI defines an active shooter as one or more in-away from the sound ofdividuals actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area. An armed individual gunfire, ushering them tofiringindiscriminatelyonboardanunderwayvessel fitsthisdefinitionprecisely.Activeshootersarenot safer areas. Humans actingthere to negotiate, take hostages, or seek leverage. Their objective is to inflict maximum casualties before law under stress may be enforcement response.unpredictable, but trainedIt is also important to recognize that although the common term is active shooter, active assailants may use a variety of crew members respondingweaponsguns,knives,explosives,ortoxicsubstances. For this reason, active shooter and active threat are often in unison can be a used interchangeably.powerful force for safety. AVOIDBARRICADECONFRONTCommit the steps of avoidbarricadeconfront to mem-ory. You should be able to apply and explain them even under extreme duress.YOUR WORST FEARS ARE REALIZEDWhether this is your first season on the water or the cul- 1. Avoidminationofdecadesofexperience,youhavecertainlyAs soon as you identify an active threat, immediately move handled emergencies: medical incidents, fires, equipmentaway from the assailant. Instruct passengers to run away failures. But this is different. The decisions you make infrom the violence as quickly as possible and to leave be-the moments ahead could determine the trajectory of thelongings behindno laptops, purses, or souvenirs. During FOGHORN 10'