Raritan HS To Conduct Active Shooter Drill Later This Month

HAZLET, NJ – Municipal first responders in Hazlet will partner with county officials later this month to conduct an active shooter drill at Raritan High School. While there will be no students or school personnel on site during the drill, administrators from the district will be present to improve the school’s emergency planning.

On May 26, residents should expect to see an influx of law enforcement and other first responders starting around 9 a.m. at the Hazlet Soccer Fields, where first responders will have the opportunity to participate in an outdoor “table-top” walk-through of the drill before conducting the actual exercise at the high school. The live drill portion of the event will take place around 1 p.m., with responders utilizing both Raritan High School and parking lots in the vicinity of Hazlet’s Veterans Park.

Participants are expected to face a simulated active shooter inside the high school building. The exercise is being coordinated by Ewing-based Critical Response Group, Inc. and is funded through a homeland security grant program.

“The drill will give municipal and county law enforcement and first responders an opportunity
to train together during a realistic active shooter simulation,” said Hazlet Township Police Chief Ted A. Wittke.

Unlike the previous active shooter drill in Manasquan in 2018, there also will be no volunteer
students or teachers from the region participating as role-players in the exercise due to COVID-19 precautions.

“As our children return to the classroom, it is imperative that first responders in Monmouth
County continue to train so we are ready for any emergency,” said Wittke. “I am grateful for the
partnership of Hazlet Township Schools for allowing us to utilize Raritan High School to host the event.”

Parents and residents will have no access to Raritan High School or Lillian Drive Elementary School from approximately 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on the day of the drill, with limited access to Veterans Park during the same time frame. Residents may observe increased first responder activity on County Road 516, Middle Road, and Union Avenue in Hazlet Township as part of the drill, but these roads will remain open during this exercise. It is recommended that travelers find an alternate route during these hours.

“Monmouth County is conducting this drill to build on the lessons learned during our last full-
scale exercise in Manasquan in 2018,” said Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

“We are committed to improving the readiness of public safety agencies throughout Monmouth
County to respond to an active threat event. We cannot become complacent.”

The scenario will include a law enforcement response coordinated with other emergency
responders and medical personnel during an Active Shooter Drill. The exercise is intended to improve the capabilities of the Bayshore Monmouth County Active Shooter Partnership, which includes law enforcement agencies in Hazlet, Aberdeen, Atlantic Highlands, Brookdale College, Highlands, Holmdel, Keansburg, Keyport, Matawan, Middletown, and Union Beach.

The exercise will also involve fire departments from both Hazlet and Holmdel, as well as EMS
agencies from around the Bayshore Region. Monmouth County Office of Emergency Management, Monmouth County Fire Marshal, Monmouth County Police Chiefs Association, Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office, and the Monmouth County Emergency Response Team (MOCERT) will also participate in the event.

"We are utilizing this event not just to improve and test our first responders at an individual
level," said Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden, whose office coordinated the funding for the event, "but to see how well our municipal and county-level agencies collaborate with each other during the stress of a realistic simulation. We will utilize the event to improve how we coordinate and communicate between public safety agencies across the region.”