Alarms blare in the background as a first responder frantically reports that an officer has been shot and the gunmen have retreated further into the building. Kirkland Police officer Tiffany Trombley calmly relays the news over the radio to other responding officers swarming the school while trying to determine where the injured officer is located.

“That felt horrible, when I heard that the officer had been shot,” Trombley says later, reflecting on the event. “It makes you not want to even say it out loud. But that’s why we train, so our reactions won’t get in the way.”

All of a sudden, the incoming radio calls halt, and NORCOM Communications Training Officer Jami Hoppen interrupts to explain a part of the NORCOM 911 system to Trombley.

The shooting is part of an active shooter simulation Bellevue-based emergency services company NORCOM is providing for police and fire

departments throughout the area. Trombley, who monitors training for the KPD, is one of the first Kirkland officers to undergo the training simulation.

Hoppen and fellow NORCOM employee Jessica Cannon first started developing the simulation two years ago, to give local police forces a 360 degree view into what goes on during 911 calls and the resulting coordination with law enforcement.

“The resources and technology we have are constantly changing,” said Hoppen. “In these kinds of situations, everybody goes into auto-drive, they revert back to their training. To not only know what you’re doing, but how to apply it in the field, is really helpful.”

During the simulation, first responders take the reins of a scripted 911 emergency in which two shooters storm Lake Washington High School and shoot the school’s resource officer and multiple students before taking several hostages in a classroom.

Sitting in the role of primary 911 dispatcher, Trombley must send police support, filter and relay incoming information over the radio and help coordinate response efforts. In part, that means fielding incoming 911 calls from concerned parents and pulling out important snippets of information. At another point during the simulation, Trombley receives a possible bomb threat and must locate a bomb-sniffing dog to send to the scene.

At times, the exercise is stressful and Trombley must work to keep her voice level and calm to avoid causing panic. As a NORCOM employee in the background answers an actual 911 call concerning a man having a seizure, Trombley focuses on the intricacies of the NORCOM system.

“Getting a different perspective is really important,” said Trombley, an eight-year police veteran. “By knowing this process, I can ask for information in an order that will suit the needs in terms of what the NORCOM system asks for, so I can get my answers quicker.”

NORCOM, which serves five local police agencies and 14 fire departments, is in the process of working with agencies to implement the simulation training. The Bellevue Police Department is planning to have officers undergo the simulation, potentially this fall.

“We would love to do it, but we’re knee deep in our own active shooter training right now,” said Captain John McCracken of the Bellevue Police Department. “But, from my understanding, it’s been beneficial to officers who have undergone it because it gives them a sense of what’s going on at the other end of the radio during a pretty major crisis.”

For now, says Hoppen, the goal is to get department supervisors and potentially a few other officers trained. That way, information can trickle down and be disseminated to a large group.

However, some police officers have been resistant to the training.

Police officers are often resistant to change, said Trombley, and may be unnerved by being in a position where they are being told what to do instead of giving orders and telling people what to do.

“For me and a few others I know, I would rather walk into a 911 call with an unknown issue than put myself in a situation like this where I feel out of my element and uncomfortable,” she said.

For now, Hoppen and Cannon continue to come up with new methods to educate first responders, hoping that should something like this ever happen, first responders will be prepared.

“It is definitely a team effort,” said Hoppen. “You just can’t do this all on your own.”