School grounds are training ground in Seal Beach, site of O.C.’s deadliest shooting

Seal Beach, the small coastal city where residents often know one another by name, was rocked by violence on October 12, 2011, when a man walked into the Salon Meritage and opened fire, killing eight people.

Scott Evans Dekraai had targeted his ex-wife, a hairstylist at the salon, over a custody dispute and was in 2017 convicted and sentenced to life in prison for committing what is still to this day the deadliest mass shooting in Orange County’s history.

The tragic event was a watershed moment for those who live and work in Seal Beach, particularly the police force tasked with protecting the lives and safety of the citizenry, according to Seal Beach Police Capt. Nick Nicholas.

Seal Beach police officers Monday walk the halls of McGaugh Elementary School as part of a mass shooting training simulation.

(Seal Beach Police Department)

“It impacted our community in a really deep way — just about everybody in town knew of or was related to one of the victims in the salon shooting, including our officers,” Nicholas said Tuesday. “We realized after that, if it could happen here it could happen anywhere.”

Since then, the department has offered specialized training to assist officers in responding to shootings and mass casualty events that have the potential to overwhelm SBPD’s staff of 39 sworn officers.

In the most recent training Monday, officers and first responders from neighboring agencies, including the Orange County Fire Authority, converged upon Seal Beach’s McGaugh Elementary School to sharpen their skills in an active shooter training that simulates worst-case scenarios in real time.

Nicholas said although the force participates in ongoing training with area SWAT teams, the campus — vacated for the summer break — provided a perfect training ground for personnel to engage with what they might encounter during a critical event at the school.

“We like to do it at the McGaugh campus, because it gives us the opportunity to practice our tactics in a more controlled environment,” he said.

Medics and Orange County Fire Authority personnel participate Monday in an active shooter training at Seal Beach’s McGaugh Elementary School.

(Seal Beach Police Department)

Signage around the Bolsa Avenue property alerted the public to the possibility of sirens and sounds of simulated gunfire and yelling and screaming from volunteer actors who role played students, teachers and shooting victims in need of triage and treatment.

Skilled officers standing in as suspects were thrown into the mix, forcing responders armed with service weapons temporarily retrofitted to shoot miniature paint balls to differentiate victims from perpetrators.

Everything was crafted to mimic the pressure, stress and uncertainty officers might experience in the field. After the simulated threat had been neutralized, medics and fire personnel offered aid to the victims, treating them on scene or preparing them for transport.

Police Chief Michael Henderson, in a statement ahead of Monday’s exercise, shared his appreciation for the cooperation of Los Alamitos Unified School District and the broader community.

“While we hate to think of the worst happening at our school, we understand that critical events can happen anywhere,” he said. “This exercise will reinforce the training our officers receive and help to ensure that our response to McGaugh is quick and effective.”

Officers point weapons, temporarily armed with paint ball “simunitions,” during a shooter training at a local elementary school.

(Seal Beach Police Department)