An Active Assailant situation is a time filled with chaos and confusion, people are running, screaming, crying and naturally scared as any adult would be, now put yourself in the shoes of an elementary school student. There are several programs in use today that are designed to help people stay safer during an active shooter situation, but there is not an effective program for school aged children, until now. This new approach to surviving a crisis is not limited to just active shooter as it can be used in almost any crisis from a natural disaster like Tornadoes or Earthquakes to man caused crisis like acts of terrorism. Any situation you may find yourself in that requires your survival skills, this process is one to highly consider.
O.N.E or Observe, Navigate, Escape was created by Securable Alternatives and built for school aged children and any other person who feels more comfortable taking advantage of a skill set that they are most at ease using, your senses! We have been using our senses since the day we were born, touching, smelling, hearing, seeing, tasting our way through life and these senses can serve us in times of crisis. We have the ability to survive if we can stay calm in the face of adversity, but we should rely on something we have a natural ability to do, and that is use our senses! That is exactly what O.N.E is, a survival process that allows us to use what we are most comfortable with.
Your surroundings can save your life if you are able to observe what’s around you. We are in these environments everyday and we should know them better than anybody. Don’t get complacent with your surroundings and take for granted what is around you. Escaping from harm is not as simple as running out, it can be an obstacle course, and knowing your surroundings can be all the difference. USE YOUR SENSES AND OBSERVE YOUR SURROUNDINGS!
We offer training on how to properly use this concept, it is easily adapted and understood by children and works well with those who are visually and hearing impaired! It is important to remember that not everyone who claims to fully understand this process can train in the proper context. As the creator of this process, please keep in mind that our vision on how this works may be different than that others who say they are the expert on this process. While there is no guarantee that any plan can save every life, it is always beneficial to have options.
Observe
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This is the most important step in your plan, as you will continue to OBSERVE your surroundings at every step of the plan. Simply stated this is meant for you to know what is surrounding you at all times. What is the environment you are in, classroom, office, retail, coffee shop, ETC…
OBSERVE with your senses (eyes, ears, nose, touch, feel) you can gain valuable insight of your surroundings just by trusting your natural instincts that we all have.
LOOK to see if the shooter is near, look to see if there are any signs of victims in your possible path, look to see if there are any possible items that you could use to help navigate or escape if needed.
TOUCH the walls, doors, windows and the floor, feel for any vibrations or temperature changes. Again the intensity of the vibration of temp changes can tell you how close or how far you are from potential harm.
What do you HEAR, what do you SMELL, these pieces of information can tell you so much about what is happening around you!
Navigate
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As you continue to OBSERVE your surroundings and feel that it is now the right time for you to NAVIGATE out of your initial location to that of a location of safety, keep these things in mind:
Always OBSERVE your surroundings and adapt to any changes.
NAVIGATE a path based on:
What your senses indicate to you.
Continue using your other senses
LISTEN for any screams, further gunshots, footsteps, voices, sirens or any other sound that could indicate some type of action. Try to ascertain distance and direction of the sound.
SMELL the air, is there anything different, do you smell smoke, gun smoke or powder. Is the smell strong or weak, this could tell you if you are close or far from the situation
Know who you are navigating with (students, co-workers, small children, strangers) they may have knowledge you need to work your way through the building.
Your ability to move, quickly, quietly, effectively and as calmly as you can is going to be of the utmost importance.
You do not need all of your belongings
However technology to communicate with is the most important item to have
Escape
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As soon as you feel you have the opportunity to do so safely. Regardless of the duration of an active shooter event and regardless of how long it for law enforcement to arrive on scene, survival time is critical and one’s ability to remain calm is essential to one’s survival.
Find the closest door or window and work your way safely towards that exit using all of your senses.
Remember this, you have been developing your senses since you were born! Children are learning everyday using their senses and understand that more than anything else at this point in their lives.
You trust your senses more than anything else, and rightfully so. It is basic human instinct to rely on our senses when danger is present, it is only when we see others in panic mode do we lose sight of using our senses to our advantage.
We must remain calm in the presence of danger.
TRAINING
It is important to receive proper training from those who understand this process from beginning to end and not fall victim to some who would pretend to fully understand the concepts expressed here.
Securable Alternatives offers this training to schools, businesses and other institutions who would like an alternative to other survival concepts during an active shooter / assailant situation. We do also offer a “Train the Trainer” program as we do recognize the importance that everyone deserves to survive. If you would like this option, just ask, we are very accommodating.
For school aged children, we do want to recognize their efforts and will gladly present them with a “First Preventer Pledge” certificate for their courage to lead themselves and others to safety. As tough as it may be to have a child understand such a difficult topic, the reality is that they do have a role in their safety and ultimate survival in a difficult situation. These discussions can be challenging for parents, however, we do also offer to conduct “Town-hall” style meetings to help parents understand how to have these conversations. Just contact us and we can figure out the logistics.
We do conduct this training in a 2 hour block or 3 hour block with hands on and interactive aspects.
* Individuals or other entities are not authorized or permitted to sell, charge or otherwise profit from instructing or presenting the Observe | Navigate | Escape process to any school, business or other entity without written consent from Securable Alternatives.
Is this program right for you?