As the anniversary of the Paris terrorist atrocity approaches, police are reminding the public of some simple steps to help stay safe in the unlikely event of an attack.
Run, Hide, Tell is the easy to remember message that explains what people should do if they are confronted by terrorists.
RUN to a place of safety. This is a far better option than to surrender or negotiate. If there is nowhere to run then HIDE. It is better to hide than confront. Remember to turn your phone to silent and turn off vibrate.
Barricade yourself in if you can. Then finally, and only when it is safe to do so, TELL by calling police on 999.
Senior National Coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, Neil Basu says: “The chances of ever being caught up in an attack are very small, but it if did happen you would not be thinking straight. You need a simple message that will quickly come to you – Run, Hide, Tell.
“We know from our research that a lot of people are familiar with the message but we want everyone to watch the video and be aware of what to do.”
Watch the video here – https://youtu.be/Gkj8AQrKLD4
For their part, police forces across Britain are training more highly skilled firearms officers that will be available to respond to terrorist threats.
The drive to increase numbers came as a response to the Paris attacks last November, and has seen a growth in training places made available to officers who volunteer and meet the demanding standards.
In England and Wales around 100 extra officers are being trained each month towards a net total increase of 1500 to be qualified by the end of the programme in April 2018. Some of these officers will have additional, highly specialised training in dealing with terrorism operations.
The uplift programme is around two-thirds funded by a £143 million Home Office grant, the rest is paid for by local forces.
National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Armed Policing Deputy Chief Constable Simon Chesterman said: “The extra officers will improve our ability to react quickly to major incidents.
“In the light of the increased threat from terrorism the response from serving officers who are prepared to risk their own lives to protect the public has been tremendous. I want to thank every officer who has stepped up and is ready to respond.”
If you want more information on this campaign, you can download a copy of the Run Tell Hide leaflet.
