Active Shooter Awareness

Video

Methodist University community members can log into the myMU Portal and view our active shooter critical incident awareness video: Shots Fired on Campus, When Lightning Strikes

Enter your login credentials for the myMU Portal and sign in. Once you have signed in, look for the link that says Active Shooter Awareness on the left side menu:

Where to Find Active Shooter Awareness in the myMU Portal

Preparing for an Active Shooter Incident on Campus

It is an unfortunate fact that shooting incidents occur on college and university campuses of all types and sizes. In an effort to help the Methodist University community more effectively prepare for and, if necessary, respond to an active shooter incident, the following information has been prepared.

Awareness and preparation are absolutely essential. An active shooter incident would be unlike anything most of us have ever experienced. While police would respond as quickly as possible, your life and the lives of others could be immediately at risk.

Every person facing such a situation must be prepared to take direct responsibility for his or her personal safety and security.

What must all of us be prepared to do if gunshots are heard on campus?

Understand what is happening and quickly decide how you are going to respond. Trust your instincts. Based on what you see and hear, determine if it make sense to:

  • Stay where you are and try to hide? or
  • Try to escape to a safer location?

If you decide it is best to stay where you are:

  • Act quickly—don’t wait for others to validate your decision
  • If possible, lock the door from the inside
  • Use furniture or other available objects to barricade the door(s)
  • Turn off the room lights and stay as quiet as possible
  • If multiple people are inside the room, spread out—don’t huddle in groups
  • If possible, use any available phone to call University Police at 910.630.7577 or dial 9‐1‐1. Tell the police as much as you can about the shooter’s location and description, and keep trying to call if you get a busy signal
  • Help keep others calm and focused on survival

If you decide it is best to try to escape to a safer location:

  • Move quickly—don’t wait for others to validate your decision
  • Leave your belongings behind
  • Get as far away from the shooter/sounds of gunfire as you can
  • If caught outside, take cover behind something like a thick wall or a large tree
  • After reaching shelter, call University Police at 910.630.7577 or dial 9‐1‐1. Tell the police as much as you can about the shooter’s location and description, and keep trying to call if you get a busy signal

If you are directly confronted by the shooter:

  • Assume his or her intentions are lethal to you and others
  • Be mentally prepared to do whatever you can to fight back and survive

An emergency notification will be sent out via MUPAWS as quickly as practical. Remember, though, that your survival of an active shooting situation will likely depend on the immediate actions you take to help protect yourself.