- My News 4: Methuen to debut ‘active shooter’ system in school
- MASS Live: Methuen to debut nation’s first ‘active shooter’ detection, tracking system in school
- Global Post: Massachusetts school deploys ‘shooter detection system’
- Canoe, Canada: Massachusetts school first to deploy ‘shooter detection system’
- The Daily Journal: Massachusetts school rolls out ‘active shooter’ system to help police if gunman ever strikes
- PoliceOne.com: Mass. school demonstrates ‘active shooter’ sensor system
- Huffington Post: Police Unveil New Tool In The Fight To Stop School Shootings
METHUEN (AP) — With students off for the Veterans Day holiday, a simulated school shooting at a Methuen grammar school on Tuesday showed what “active shooter” technology could do to help police catch a gunman if the horrible threat ever strikes as it has at other schools across the country.
Read Full Article at CBS Boston.com
Guardian works and includes testimonials from the Methuen Mayor, Chief of Police, and Rick Stanley, retired NEMLEC SWAT Commander who was a first responder at the 2000 shooting at Edgewater Technology in Massachusetts.
Shooter Detection Systems Demonstrates Guardian Technology at Event in Methuen – Partnerships with Police, Schools, Government on Display with Live Drill
METHUEN, Mass – Shooter Detection Systems LLC (SDS) today conducted a live active shooter police drill to showcase the benefits of its Guardian Indoor Active Shooter Detection System, which has been installed and brought online in one of the City of Methuen’s public schools.
Drawing upon the same concepts and necessities that brought automated fire alarms to public schools in the 1940s, Guardian’s well-researched system uses a state-of-the art audio and visual sensor network to instantly detect the location of a gunshot inside of a building and immediately alert police and school officials.
“Today we demonstrated the Guardian System’s ability to immediately detect a shot fired inside a school and alert the proper authorities and school officials. If this had been an actual emergency situation, the school could have automatically initiated their evacuation and lockdown procedures, and many lives could have been saved,” said Christian Connors, Chief Executive Officer of SDS.
Tuesday’s event in Methuen was the culmination of a program to install a fully-functional Guardian system in one of its schools, and it continues the city’s long history of proactive efforts against school violence.
“In the 1990s we began creating safety plans for our schools that include emergency evacuation and lockdown criteria, and by 2002, we had already started training our school resource officers and patrol force on school violence crisis response procedures, but there was always the added danger of an active shooter, roaming a large and complex building, which officers then had to search, room-by-room,” said Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon. “With Shooter Detection Systems’ Guardian, our officers know exactly where the shooter is, how many shots were fired, and if the shooter is moving to different areas of the building. It would save several minutes in a real-life situation, and that could mean dozens of lives saved.”
Judith Scannell, Superintendent of Schools in Methuen said: “Safety is the primary concern for all superintendents of schools. I am pleased to be the first school system in the nation to have this innovative new system.”
The event was attended by a wide variety of law enforcement and government officials, including Chiefs of Police from across New England, and police officers from as far away as New Jersey and New Hampshire.
Also in attendance were Congresswoman Niki Tsongas. “Children have a right to go to school in a safe environment. It is all of our responsibility to ensure that our schools are safe sanctuaries for learning,” Congresswoman Tsongas said. “Our schools are equipped with smoke detectors in the unlikely event of a fire. The technology developed by Shooter Detection Systems is in effect an alarm system for gunfire. As a Member of the House Armed Services Committee in Congress, I am familiar with the underlying technology that is in this sensor system. It is the same technology that has been deployed over 10,000 times in Iraq and Afghanistan to detect and identify gunfire directed at our troops. It is a proven technology that has saved many American Soldier’s lives.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
METHUEN, Mass. – With students off for the Veterans Day holiday, a simulated school shooting at a Methuen grammar school on Tuesday showed what “active shooter” technology could do to help police catch a gunman if the horrible threat ever strikes as it has at other schools across the country.
In the live demonstration, the “gunman” entered the school armed with an assault rifle, opening fire with dummy rounds first in the school library then rampaging through hallways and classrooms. But he had only a few minutes to wreak havoc.
Smoke alarm-sized sensors installed in classrooms, hallways and other points throughout the building were activated by the sounds of gunfire, and police officers were immediately able to track his movements and quickly subdue him.
Methuen says one of its schools will become the first in the nation to deploy an automated system to detect and track a gunman on campus.
The active shooter detection system installed at a Methuen school recently and demonstrated on Tuesday was put in place free of charge to the city, but the company behind it says it has a few interested paying customers lined up.
Shooter Detection Systems (SDS) is the Rowley-based company that installed its Guardian Indoor Gunshot Detection system in a Methuen school. (The city isn’t releasing the name of the school.) The system’s sensors can detect the sound of a gunshot and alert authorities. It also allows them to track the shooter before entering the building. SDS’s technology was developed in tandem with DARPA and Raytheon.
In the live demonstration, the “gunman” entered the school armed with an assault rifle, opening fire with dummy rounds first in the school library then rampaging through hallways and classrooms.
But he had only a few minutes to wreak havoc.
Smoke alarm-sized sensors installed in classrooms, hallways and other points throughout the building were activated by the sounds of gunfire, and police officers immediately were able to track his movements and quickly subdue him.
Nearly 100 people, including U.S. Rep. Nikki Tsongas and regional law enforcement officers, gathered in the school to view the demonstration of what the school district bills as the first such system operating in a public school in the U.S.
METHUEN, Mass. — With students off for the Veterans Day holiday, a simulated school shooting at Methuen grammar school Tuesday showed what “active shooter” technology could do to help police catch a gunman if the horrible threat ever strikes as it has at other schools across the country.
In the live demonstration, the “gunman” entered the school armed with an assault rifle, opening fire with dummy rounds first in the school library then rampaging through hallways and classrooms.
But he had only a few minutes to wreak havoc.
Smoke alarm-sized sensors installed in classrooms, hallways and other points throughout the building were activated by the sounds of gunfire, and police officers immediately were able to track his movements and quickly subdue him.
Nearly 100 people, including U.S. Rep. Nikki Tsongas and regional law enforcement officers, gathered in the school to view the demonstration of what the school district bills as the first such system operating in a public school in the U.S.
Lt. Greg Gallant portrays an active shooter during a demonstration Tuesday in Methuen. CHARLES KRUPA/The Associated Press
By Philio Marcelo
The Associated Press
Posted Nov. 11, 2014 @ 6:19 pm
METHUEN — With students off for the Veterans Day holiday, a simulated school shooting at Methuen grammar school Tuesday showed what “active shooter” technology could do to help police catch a gunman if the horrible threat ever strikes as it has at other schools across the country.
In the live demonstration, the “gunman” entered the school armed with an assault rifle, opening fire with dummy rounds first in the school library then rampaging through hallways and classrooms.
But he had only a few minutes to wreak havoc.
Smoke alarm-sized sensors installed in classrooms, hallways and other points throughout the building were activated by the sounds of gunfire, and police officers immediately were able to track his movements and quickly subdue him.
Nearly 100 people, including U.S. Rep. Nikki Tsongas and regional law enforcement officers, gathered in the school to view the demonstration of what the school district bills as the first such system operating in a public school in the U.S.
School Superintendent Judith Scannell said she hopes the district of about 7,300 students can find the money to pay for outfitting its four other schools.
See more at: http://www.southcoasttoday.com
Methuen school officials conducted a live test Tuesday of a new system that could detect a gunman roaming the building — the first system of its kind installed in a US school.
Authorities did not identify the school, but they said the test suggested the system could save police vital minutes locating a shooter.
The Guardian Indoor Gunshot Detection system has the ability to notify officers exactly where a shooter is, how many shots have been fired, and if the shooter is moving about the building, Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon said in a statement.
Christian Connors, chief executive officer of Shooter Detection Systems, the company that produces the Guardian, said the test demonstrated how it “could have automatically initiated their evacuation and lockdown procedures, and many lives could have been saved.”