The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) helps the country prepare for, respond to, and recover from public health emergencies and disasters. ASPR routinely responds to severe weather events such as hurricanes and tornadoes and to disease outbreaks such as COVID-19 and mpox. Less routine, but increasingly more frequent, ASPR provides support during responses to and recovery from a mass shooting event.
A mass shooting event almost always has multiple fatalities with many victims transferred to hospitals in the area at once-- often straining local resources. When these incidents occur, the State Local Territorial or Tribal (SLTT) governments can request ASPR assistance for their response and recovery actions.
ASPR recently responded to the mass shooting incident in Lewiston, Maine. That response highlights how we support communities to respond to and recover from these horrific events.
On October 5, a lone gunman killed 18 people and injured 13 more in two shootings—one at a bowling alley and another at a nearby bar in Lewiston. Immediately following the incident, the Commissioner of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Maine health authorities met with ASPR Region 1. The state requested expertise from ASPR to assist their leaders develop and implement a behavioral health response plan. A team including Regional Emergency Coordinators, two disaster behavioral health experts from ASPR’s Office of Community Mitigation and Recovery, and two mental health responders from the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, deployed to Maine to respond to this request.
Working in support of Maine health officials, the team from ASPR assisted the state’s DHHS in developing and implementing a behavioral health response plan, advised state authorities on trauma-informed public messaging, provided an inventory of resources available to state health authorities, and trained Maine clinicians in Lewiston on behavioral health interventions effective after incidents of mass violence. The ASPR team worked with the Central Maine Medical Center emergency department to identify local and regional sources to help hospital staff and first responders cope with the stress of the tragedy that was unfolding in their community. Additionally, ASPR assisted the hospital and Maine DHHS to identify solutions to staffing issues during this response.
For this and other responses, including the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012 and the Umpqua Community College shooting in 2015, ASPR’s regional staff presence has been critical. Our teams work hard to build and maintain relationships at all levels, so they can determine the appropriate kind of response to fit the specific need within the community.
Behavioral health resources are critical during a mass shooting event. ASPR is working to expand its capabilities in this space. This year, the agency has significantly increased its disaster behavioral health deployable capabilities to better serve communities and survivors in emergency events including incidents of mass violence.
Mass shooting events pose significant challenges to the behavioral health of affected communities. Trauma spectrum symptoms, anxiety, and complex grief are all common reactions to mass shooting events that can affect survivors as well as rescuers, hospital staff, and support personnel. Adding to that trauma, in a mass shooting situation, many care providers will likely know someone who was injured or killed compounding the challenges they face while responding to the incident.
ASPR hopes that no other communities will have to deal with a mass shooting event, but should one occur, we stand ready to provide support needed to help the responders respond and the community recover.
