Thai schools hold active shooter drills after deadly attack

The drills follow a directive requiring schools to draw up security plans and rehearse emergency response procedures

Schools in Thailand conducted active shooter drills on Wednesday, as authorities moved to strengthen security measures two weeks after a 14-year-old opened fire at a school and killed at least eight people.

At the Surasamontree School in Bangkok, students took part in a “run, hide, fight” exercise, with a police officer dressed in black and acting as a mock attacker, armed with a handgun and an assault rifle firing blanks.

Students ran from the gunman and hid under tables and behind locked doors, while others used furniture to block entrances. In one scenario, students tackled and pinned down the attacker after he entered the classroom.

The drills follow a directive signed on August 10 by Education Minister Prasert Jantararuangtong requiring schools to draw up security plans and rehearse emergency response procedures.

“Every school is responding because this is a new-age threat that can happen anywhere,” said Visitsak Vipattanamongkol, superintendent of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit at the Patrol and Special Operations Division of the police.