St. Charles Parish employees perform active shooter drill

DESTRAHAN, La. (WGNO) — First responders and school employees in St. Charles Parish are practicing in the event of an active shooter.

The active threat drill comes a day after a teenage student opened fire in his school in Iowa, killing one student and injuring seven people.

It took place at Destrehan High School with most school employees and some students in attendance.

The faculty and students were assigned locations. Some were in different areas of Destrehan High, and others were placed at a reunification center.

During the drill, people could be heard yelling for help, and the deputies responded in real-time. They were not briefed on how it would unfold.

The objective was to locate the faux shooter while securing different areas of the school and checking people for injuries.

“Of course, the way we train, the way we have trained for many years is to actually be aggressive, to be on the offensive, to combat and go after the target aggressively,” St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg Champagne said. “Whether it’s a bailiff, a court security, a corrections officer, a deputy on the street, anybody could be passing by when the call comes out, so we train everybody the same.”

During the demonstration, the faux shooter attempted to evade authorities, but deputies were able to restrain him for seven minutes.

St. Charles Parish Schools System Ken Oertling says although this collaboration with the sheriff’s office is necessary, they have mental health professionals stationed at all the schools.

“As important as the response is the support we provide kids to make sure that their emotional well-being is taken care of as much as their physical well-being at our schools,” Oertling said.

Officials would like parents to know the drill is not a scare tactic but a protective measure.

“We don’t want to scare you, but we just want everybody to know we’re as prepared as we can be to protect your children.”

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