Emergency responders and officials gathered March 16 at the Public Safety Building for the borough’s first tabletop exercise to establish a unified plan for responding to an armed hostile intruder at a school.

The training brought together the police department, Alaska Wildlife Trooper, fire department, SEARHC, borough administration and school officials. Participants worked through a grim scenario involving a student making violent threats on social media and following through with an attack.

Police Chief Gene Meek led the group through the timeline of a hypothetical attack, asking how each agency would react the moment a threat is reported.

“What happens then? What should we be seeing after that happens?” Meek asked.

School District Administrative Assistant Kimberly Powell said the immediate priority is a lockdown. Schools Superintendent Joshua Garrett emphasized the need for instant communication.

“I think 911 should be called and all the information should be given to law enforcement,” Garrett said. “We lock all the entrances. If it’s before school officially starts, we keep the kids out of the building. If it’s after the school day starts, we keep everyone where they are.”

Meek warned that physical barriers might not be enough and pushed the narrative into darker territory. He described a gunman forcing entry into a building through glass doors, with the person who reported the intruder losing direct contact with police.

“If a gunman in that situation is cornered and feels trapped, the majority of the time he’s going to try to either shoot it out with police or he’s going to shoot himself,” Meek explained. “These types of individuals don’t have backup plans.”

To gain a tactical advantage, the borough is turning to technology. Within a week, Meek said the IN FORCE 911 app will be installed on police electronic devices, followed by installation on phones carried by emergency services, borough and school staff.

The borough assembly authorized the purchase in February. The chief described the app as a “virtual panic button” that links all agencies instantly.

“Having that app in use will be really helpful for all of us and it will save a lot of time,” he said. “But we also have to have a clear purpose of how all our agencies will handle things at each step of an incident.”

A major concern raised was public hysteria. Meek said residents might show up to a scene armed and ready for action, which could complicate the police response.

“Things like that need to be contained,” he said. “And we need a system in place for when the information about the threat is made known to the public.”

Borough Manager Mason Villarma said an alert would be sent to the news media and the public within minutes of a confirmed threat.

“We’ll have to say something to inform the public that certain areas are restricted and it will be treated as a threat if someone crosses into the restricted area,” Villarma said.

During the session, Sgt. Damon Roher suggested using TSA agents from the airport to help maintain security. The chief said he would look into that possibility. Both Meek and Villarma agreed that Petersburg emergency services would also be contacted immediately for mutual aid.

“I want to say thanks for doing this,” Villarma said of the March 16 exercise. “I think this is a good thing for us to have a plan for response to a threat like this.”

Meek indicated more exercises will follow to further refine the borough’s emergency protocols.