Role of Tactical EMS in Support of Public Safety and the Public Health Response to a Hostile Mass Casualty Incident

On the morning of August 1, 1966 a lone student ascended the campus tower of the University of Texas at Austin and killed between 13 and 16 people and wounded 31 others in what was at the time the deadliest mass shooting in this nation’s history. As this massacre unfolded, a large albeit chaotic public safety response ensued that included onand off-duty city police officers, sheriff’s deputies, and state police troopers, as well as armed civilians who arrived to assist. This tragic and then unprecedented incident demonstrated to law enforcement agencies that increased preparedness and specialized response teams were necessary to deal with crises requiring intervention beyond the normal capabilities of patrol officers.