An active shooter incident can unfold with frightening speed, leaving very little time to process what is happening. Official guidance from the FBI and CISA emphasizes making a rapid decision based on your surroundings: run if a safe escape exists, hide when evacuation is not possible, and fight only as an absolute last resort. The goal is not to predict the attacker, but to create distance, deny access, and stay alive.
1. Know Your Exits Before You Need Them
Make a habit of noticing at least 2 possible exits whenever you enter a workplace, school, restaurant, theater, or other crowded location. Do not assume the entrance you used will remain available. If gunfire or an immediate threat appears, leave quickly through the safest accessible route and move away from the danger. Leave bags and personal belongings behind rather than slowing yourself down. If possible, encourage others to escape, but do not remain behind simply because someone refuses to move. Once outside, keep moving until you reach a genuinely safe location.
2. If You Cannot Run, Hide Properly
When escape is unsafe or blocked, hiding means doing more than simply getting underneath a desk. Choose a location that keeps you out of the attacker’s view and makes entry difficult. 3 priorities are especially important: get behind a substantial barrier when possible, lock or barricade the door, and silence phones and other devices, including vibration. Stay quiet and avoid unnecessary movement. Remember that concealment can hide you from view, but it does not necessarily stop bullets. Remain hidden until identifiable authorities give the all-clear.
3. Treat Fighting as the Absolute Last Option
There is no universal technique for confronting an armed attacker, and fighting should never be the first choice when escape or hiding is reasonably possible. The FBI describes physical resistance as a last resort when your life is in immediate danger. If there is no safe escape and the attacker reaches your hiding place, your priority becomes disrupting the threat long enough to survive. 1 principle matters most: commit to protecting your life rather than freezing. Use whatever ordinary objects or environmental advantages are immediately available, without pursuing the attacker.
4. Call for Help and Give Useful Information
Once you are somewhere reasonably safe, contact emergency services rather than trying to investigate the situation yourself. A useful call can provide 5 key details: your location, the attacker’s location if known, the number of attackers, a physical description, and information about weapons or victims. Do not expose yourself simply to obtain additional information. If police arrive while people are evacuating, keep your hands visible, follow instructions, and avoid sudden movements. Officers may initially move past injured people because their first priority can be stopping the ongoing threat.
5. Learn Basic Bleeding Control Before an Emergency
Survival does not necessarily end when the shooting stops. Someone nearby may have a serious bleeding injury while emergency medical teams are still approaching. The FBI notes that uncontrolled blood loss can become fatal in 5 minutes or less, making immediate first aid potentially critical. If the area is safe enough to help, apply firm direct pressure to severe bleeding and use a tourniquet when appropriate and when you know how to apply one. Do not put yourself back into danger to reach an injured person. Safety comes first.
