Law Enforcement Takes Advantage of the Last Days of Summer Break to Train

Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Deputies will work with Northwest Florida State College to train for an active shooter on campus this week. 

Starting Tuesday, August 2nd, Sheriff’s Deputies, Police officers from various agencies, firefighters, local and state agencies as well as school personnel will participate in the training. The training will take place at Northwest Florida State College and Bluewater Elementary School and will conclude on  August 5th. 

The exercises are “Part of a drill and are not an immediate threat,” A release from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said. 

Additionally, public information staff for the Sheriff’s Office say that planning has been in the works for months. 

First responders, including Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office School Resource Officers will train for active shooter response at Bluewater Elementary School on Tuesday. Earlier this year, Bluewater Elementary received a Bomb Threat. No one was harmed as a result of the threat. Additionally, the Sheriff’s Office has not reported any arrests in the case. 

School Resource Officers will also train at Northwest Florida State College on Wednesday. 

RELATED: Niceville SRO arrests former student who entered school property with a gun. 

Okaloosa Sheriff's Deputies in Tactical Gear practice for an active shooter. 📸: Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office
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School Shootings

Sheriff’s Deputies and other law enforcement agencies will train in Okaloosa-area learning institutions for active shooters amid a heightened vigilance concerning school shootings in the United States. 

According to Edweek, which has tracked school shootings since 2018, there have been a total of 27 shootings in schools across the United States so far in 2022. 

83 adults and children have been injured or killed in those shootings. 

Florida has had two shootings at schools so far this year – Texas and Maryland have had more – with three each since the beginning of the year. 

The state’s first shooting took place at Seminole High School in Sanford, Florida in January. One person was injured in the incident. According to ClickOrlando.com, a teenager shot a student at the school after an alleged altercation. 

The second shooting took place in southeastern Florida at North Gardens High School – three people were injured in the attack. NBC6, a local television station, reported that the attack was a drive-by shooting. A 17 and 18-year old were arrested in connection to the shooting and charged with premeditated murder. 

No one has been killed in a school shooting in Florida this year. 

 

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