Active Shooter - Cover

The last few days I have had repeated discussions with people about active shooter situations. We have discussed the situation in overview and a little in depth. One thing I noticed when talking to people is most "regular" folks do not understand what stops a bullet. Staying with our concept of RUN, HIDE, FIGHT we need to understand COVER more than most people do.

There are two things which matter when bullets start flying, COVER and CONCEALMENT. If you are running or hiding both of these things matter and need to be taken into account. Running into an open field and just standing there is not as good as running and putting COVER between you and the bad guy. For this post we are going to focus on COVER.

"In military combat, the concept of cover refers to anything which is capable of physically protecting an individual from enemy fire. This differentiates it from the similar concept of concealment, in that an object or area of concealment only affords the benefit of stealth, not actual protection from small arms fire or artillery fragments. An example of "cover vs. concealment" would be sandbags vs. tall grass. Cover may be a naturally-occurring feature, such as a rock or a tree stump, or it may be a constructed feature, such as a foxhole or a trench." Wikikpedia

If you haven't watched this video please do! This is a good video and explains the concept of RUN, HIDE, FIGHT. Sorry you have to copy and paste, I do not know how to add the link right..........

https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cirg/active-shooter-and-mass-casualty-incidents/run-hide-fight-video

Here is another version of the same information.

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/dept-of-homeland-security-releases-shooting-scenario-video

In both of these videos they show people hiding, barricading doors and they use the word COVER. Problem is they do not tell people the desk people are hiding under in most cases won't stop a bullet. The door they are barricading won't stop a bullet. Most desk are no longer made of solid wood or metal thick enough to stop even a stray round. What they are showing is concealment. Again, think of a bullet as a trash truck coming at you, what would stop a truck from running you over?

A cement wall, building, three or four inside walls, thick steel, you get the idea. More is better! If you are running put as many things between you and the bad guy as you can! Items which do not count as "things"........ Your press board desk. The door to your office. Inside walls. Glass of any kind!

You have to have some understanding of what it takes to stop a bullet. Look at these photos of military folks using sandbags. Look at the photos and study how thick the COVER is between them and the direction they expect to be shot at from. This is the minimum amount of protection soldiers are putting between themselves and the bad guys. You need to have some understanding of what is needed to stop a bullet!

Remember, concealment is good. If the bad guy can not see you the odds of you being shot goes down.You want cover! Even if the bad guy knows where you are but can't shoot through your COVER you live!!! Now the best situation is if you have COVER and concealment!!! The bad guy can't see you and if they fire wildly they can't hit you!!!!! Reality is not like the movies, bullets go through most things. More is better, thicker is better, mass is better, heavy is better, more heavy-thick things between you and the bad guy is better!!!

As Always,

Stay Safe!!!!