Cook County holds armed intruder training session at courthouse for county employees

Cook County will hold an armed intruder/active shooter training for all county employees on September 21 and 22. The training will include classroom sessions and a simulation at the Cook County Courthouse. 

The simulation portion of the training will be held on September 22 at 3 pm. During the training session, the courthouse will be closed to the public. 

The county previously held an armed intruder/active shooter training session in 2018. The county wanted to offer another training in 2020, but due to the pandemic, the county had to postpone the training.

Since the 2018 training, the courthouse has added a new distress alarm system, and the training provides an opportunity to test the alarm system. 

“When new employees are on-boarded, they are made aware of our emergency procedure policies, and this distress alarm system is part of that,” Keyport said. 

Keyport said the county has a handful of new employees, and “It’s a good way for employees to hear the sounds, and know what that sounds like. So, in  a real-life situation, they’re not confusing that with a fire alarm.”

WTIP’s Kalli Hawkins spoke with Keyport about the training session and to learn more about emergency management in Cook County. Audio from the interview is below. 

Kalli Hawkins September 20, 2022