NORWICH – After school ended on Friday, the Norwich City School District acted out an active shooter drill, involving wounded teachers and students, two active shooters, and seven separate agencies taking part in the event.

The enactment began Friday at around 3 p.m. when the Norwich Police Department received a call of an active shooter in the Norwich High School.

It took place after school hours, when only students who had volunteered to take part remained in the building.

As part of the scenario one officer was shot, and after the officer made a request for backup, the other law enforcement members entered the school with assault weapons and tactical gear, successfully neutralizing the two shooters walking around the high school's halls.

The shooters were given racing pistols with blank rounds to simulate gunfire, and both students and teachers played a role in the drill with fake gunshot wounds and blood.

"The goal of the drill is to test all of the participating agency's policies, procedures, and responses," said the drill's coordinator, Norwich Fire Captain Jason Gray.

"The Norwich Fire Department, Norwich Police Department, the school district, the sheriff's office, the hospital, the county's fire coordinators office, and the City of Norwich Emergency Management team were all involved with the drill," said Gray.

Gray said the drill was a refinement on the drill held by the school four years ago, but even with months of planning, it's impossible to plan for what teachers and students are going to do in an emergency situation.

In this year's drill, the teachers fought against the shooters by putting tables against doors and pouring vegetable oil near the doorway.

According to Gray, the teachers' actions weren't part of the plan for the drill, but in a debriefing session, Norwich Police Officer Brandon Clarke said it was a positive effort and why drills like this were being practiced.

"The teachers were fighting to survive in the best way they could," Clarke said. "It may not have been what the school guidelines suggest, but it may have kept them alive if this were the real deal."

In the debriefing session, Norwich City School District Superintendent Gerard O’Sullivan thanked the agencies for taking part in the drill and said, “I feel so much better knowing that such capable individuals are here to protect our school. Thank you.”

O'Sullivan said he was unsure of what kind of response parents would have to the drill.

"The more we prepare, the better off we'll be," he said, adding, “Hopefully we never have to use this training, but a lot of good ideas and suggestions come out as people focus on events like this, along with safety issues in the building."

Pictured: Norwich Police Officers Paul Slack and Matt Roberts carrying an injured student after the student sustained a gunshot wound to the leg as part of the school's active shooter drill. (Zachary Meseck Photo)