Leaders involved with #strongaugusta represented the Augusta community at the annual National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Conference and Expo in Orlando, Florida, on June 17.
The comprehensive event gathered thousands of the industry’s leading professionals, and the #strongaugusta session was one of 120 educational sessions addressing the latest issues, challenges and trends in the world of fire, electrical and lifes safety.
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Topics discussed included code compliance, emergency preparedness and response, emerging technologies, global issues, public education, building and life safety, fire protection systems, industrial hazards, electrical safety and more.
Originally started in 2020, #strongaugusta is a community effort that has garnered Augusta attention for being the first city in the nation to formally adopt the NFPA 3000 standard – guidelines for addressing active shooters – allowing it to act as a framework for the Active Shooter/Hostile Event Response (ASHER) program.
“The NFPA 3000 is a national standard, which the FBI was a part of creating, and we provided training to about 8,000 conference participants by offering the opportunity to learn how we used the standard in a community-wide effort,” said Brian Ozden, assistant special agent in the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to a press release from Augusta University, a diverse contingent of community stakeholders from across the CSRA support the #strongaugusta effort, including Augusta University, Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, the Richmond County Marshal’s Office, Augusta Richmond County Fire/EMA, Pain College, Fort Gordon, Columbia County EMA, the Augusta and Atlanta offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and several others.
Using the standard to potentially prepare for or recover from active shooters, Ozden said it is highly important for every city department to be involved in the #strongaugusta effort, because each needs to have a set plan of action prepared should a hostile event ever occur in the area.
“Everybody thinks of an active shooter as a rescue issue for law enforcement but it’s really not … there’s oftentimes the component of the fire department, [emergency services], 911, and within a school there’s resource officers,” he said. “We’ve analyzed every active shooter event since Columbine, Virginia Tech and all the in between and these are the things that we’ve identified.”
Giving cities and states the freedom to customize a response plan, Ozden said the NFPA 3000 standard fundamentally allows everyone to focus on the bigger picture and practice how to best take control of an ASHER situation.
“A lot of it is just about speaking the same language of those that are involved and knowing what each department is going to do in these situations,” he said.
Ozden said citizens can also be trained to take action in active shooter situations by looking for escape routes, deciding how to fortify locked rooms and whether or not to run or hunker down until rescue can help.
“We teach them to run, hide or fight,” he said. “That way they know how to act if they see law enforcement and they know how to act to keep themselves safe, and we’re never going to get it perfect, but it gives us – as a community – a way to get better and better.”
Following the rescue of victims, Ozden said #strongaugusta’s adoption of the NFPA 3000 also takes into account the community recovery aspect of an ASHER plan, such as getting child advocates involved.
“It’s very thorough,” he said.
Augusta Fire Chief/EMA Director Antonio Burden of the Augusta Fire Department said the #strongaugusta campaign is “crucial” because it allows the community to adopt a proactive approach.
“Focusing on preparation rather than just reaction, which can save lives,” he said. “By adopting NFPA 3000, it standardizes training across responders, eliminating confusion and improving effectiveness.”
Burden said presenting the standard at the NFPA conference was vital as it set forth a national example and positioned Augusta to be seen as a model for other communities to implement a comprehensive ASHER plan.
“It allows Augusta to share its experiences and best practices with other communities and gain national recognition, potentially attracting resources and funding to strengthen its preparedness efforts,” he said.
With the Fire Department often leading in coordinating emergency responses and establishing a unified command structure during hostile events, Burden said the city’s firefighters play an essential role in #strongaugusta by training rigorously in search and rescue to quickly locate and evacuate victims.
He also ultimately believes the campaign will make Augusta safer in the long run.
“#strongaugusta will make our beloved city significantly safer by saving lives through quicker, coordinated responses,” he said. “It will help protect our homes and businesses, reducing the damage caused by emergencies. Most importantly, it will give our community peace of mind, knowing that we are prepared and united in keeping each other safe.”
For more information on #strongaugusta, visit: https://www.augusta.edu/strongaugusta
Those looking to partner with or receive training from the #strongaugusta effort can contact the Augusta University’s emergency manager at 706-495-6958 or email strongaugusta@augusta.edu
“We’re implementing this so, if something like this ever does happen, we can say that we’re prepared as best as we can be,” Ozden said.
