NIH Record - National Institutes of Health

Training Video on Active Shooter Filmed

NIH first responders are filmed as they load ambulance during drill.
NIH Fire and Rescue respond to a mock active shooter event in Bldg. 35. Shown are (from l) Tom Feliu of Rocket Media, cameraman Mike Peters, Fire Technician Josh Morris, Fire Technician Ryan Pidgeon, Fire Technician Michael Keys, Master Firefighter Delonte Stephens and Fire Technician Kory Alspaugh.

Photo:  Joy Farrar, Alice Hardy

Female actor in lab coat running towards camera
During an active shooter event, the first safety step is to run, as shown by Stephanie Vann (running through door) as Feliu of Rocket Media films the action.

Photo:  Joy Farrar, Alice Hardy

Camera monitor showing actors posing with makeshift weapons found in a lab environment
During an active shooter event, if you cannot run or hide, then fight with whatever you can find. Shown are actors (from l) Ray Ficca (shooter), Antonio Garcia (holding gray canister), Vincent Stovall (holding acid jar) and Fariba Armani (holding fire extinguisher).

Photo:  Joy Farrar, Alice Hardy

Actors posing with makeshift weapons found in a lab environment
Actors receive direction on the fight scene. Crew member Brian Dinkel is in foreground.

Photo:  Joy Farrar, Alice Hardy

On Sept. 5-8, the NIH Police filmed an active shooter training video on campus near Bldg. 35 and along Convent Drive. The subject involved civilian response to an active shooter situation.

Portions of the film were intended to simulate an actual emergency situation. NIH officers displayed weapons, but no shots, real or simulated, were fired. 

The NIH Fire Department responded to simulated victims. 

To a bystander, these staged victims could look real but they were only present in the area of Bldg. 35. Actors played various roles in the film.

The training video will help NIH Police better educate and prepare employees for the proper response in the unlikely event of a true active shooter situation. 

A wide distribution is anticipated once the video is finished late this year, including as part of employee training and orientation.

The NIH Record

The NIH Record, founded in 1949, is the biweekly newsletter for employees of the National Institutes of Health.

Published 25 times each year, it comes out on payday Fridays.

Editor: Dana Talesnik
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Associate Editor: Patrick Smith
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Assistant Editor: Eric Bock
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Staff Writer: Amber Snyder
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