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Gwinnett firefighters to get bullet-proof vests

Gwinnett County firefighters will soon have more equipment to keep them safe, but it has nothing to do with fighting fires.

Commissioners have approved more than $344,000 to buy nearly 300 bullet-proof vests for firefighters saying it’s a sign of the times.

“We often times see firefighters and paramedics who are held outside a building having to wait until law enforcement is able to clear the building and make sure the shooter is contained,” says Capt. Tommy Rutledge.  “Now we’re able to equip them so they can go in quickly with law enforcement personnel.”

Both police and fire agencies began taking a look at policies surrounding mass shootings after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in December 2012.

“We also began to look at additional trauma equipment--putting quick deploy trauma kits on the apparatus… and training our firefighters in rapid assessment,” says Rutledge.

Both Gwinnett police and firefighters will be training together this summer at a local high school on how to respond in the event of a mass school shooting.

Firefighters will begin using the new body armor as soon as they have been fitted.  The department is also working on guidelines as to when the vest should be used—likely not when fighting an actual fire.

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